IAEA: Iran added advanced enriching machines at Natanz
VIENNA (Reuters) – Iran has begun enriching uranium with a fourth cascade, or cluster, of advanced IR-2m machines at its underground Natanz plant, a report by the UN atomic watchdog showed, in a further breach of its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
It was the latest of many steps by Iran raising pressure on US President Joe Biden with the two sides in a standoff over who should move first to salvage a deal that was meant to curb Iran’s ability to develop a nuclear bomb, if it so intended.
The deal imposed limits on Iran’s nuclear activities that it started breaching in 2019 in response to a US withdrawal from the accord under Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump, as well as the reimposition of US sanctions against the Islamic Republic that had been lifted under the agreement.
The deal only lets Iran enrich with relatively antiquated first-generation IR-1 centrifuges at the underground Fuel Enrichment Plant (FEP) at Natanz, a commercial-scale enrichment facility. Last year, Tehran began adding more advanced centrifuges there able to enrich much faster than the IR-1.
“On 31 March 2021, the Agency verified at FEP that: Iran had begun feeding natural UF6 into a fourth cascade of 174 IR-2m centrifuges,” the International Atomic Energy Agency said in its confidential report dated Wednesday and obtained by Reuters on Thursday. By UF6, it
was referring to uranium hexafluoride, the form in which uranium is fed into centrifuges for enrichment.
Iran has informed the IAEA that it plans to use six cascades of IR-2m machines at the FEP to refine uranium up to 5% fissile purity. The report said the remaining two cascades were installed but not yet enriching. Installation of a planned second cascade of IR-4 machines had not yet begun, it added.
“In summary, as of 31 March 2021, the Agency verified that Iran was using 5,060 IR-1 centrifuges installed in 30 cascades, 696 IR-2m centrifuges installed in four cascades and 174 IR-4 centrifuges installed in one cascade to enrich natural UF6 up to 5% U-235 at FEP,” said the report, sent to IAEA member states.
Last week, Iran said it will cold test its redesigned Arak nuclear reactor as prelude to fully commissioning it later in the year.
Spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi was quoted by local media as saying the cold testing, which usually includes the initial startup of fluid systems and support systems, will take place early in the Iranian new year that begins this Sunday.
“In other words, we have advanced work in the field of fuel, storage, etc,” Kamalvandi said.
Iran has recently accelerated its breaches of the 2015 international nuclear deal in an apparent bid to pressure US President Joe Biden to reverse his predecessor’s abandonment of the agreement. Both sides are locked in a standoff over who should move first to save the deal.
Iran agreed to shut down the reactor at Arak – about 250km. southwest of Tehran – under the 2015 deal. It was allowed to produce a limited amount of heavy water and Tehran has been working on redesigning the reactor. It says it plans to make isotopes for medical and agricultural use.
The International Atomic Energy Agency said in a report to member states earlier this week that Iran has started enriching uranium at Natanz with a second type of advanced centrifuge, the IR-4, in a further breach of the deal.