Nuclear facilities in Iran

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Main article: Nuclear program of Iran
Nuclear program of Iran

Contents

[edit] Anarak

Anarak has a waste storage site, near Yazd.

[edit] Arak

Arak was one of the two sites exposed by a spokesman for the MEK terrorist group in 2002. Iran is constructing a 40 MWt heavy water moderated research reactor at this location 34°22′24″N 49°14′27″E / 34.3734°N 49.2408°E / 34.3734; 49.2408, which should be ready for commissioning in 2014, referred to as IR-40.[1][2] In August 2006, Iran announced the inauguration of the Arak plant for the production of heavy water. Under the terms of Iran's safeguards agreement, Iran was under no obligation to report the existence of the site while it was still under construction since it was not within the 180-day time limit specified by the safeguards agreement. This reactor is intended to replace the life-expired 1967 Tehran Nuclear Research Center research reactor, mainly involved in the production of radioisotopes for medical and agricultural purposes.[3]

[edit] Ardakan

Construction of a nuclear fuel site at Ardakan is reportedly scheduled to be finished in mid-2005.

[edit] Bonab

The Atomic Energy Research Center at Bonab is investigating the applications of nuclear technology in agriculture. It is run by the AEOI.

[edit] Bushehr

Main article: Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant

The Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant (Persian نیروگاه اتمی بوشهر) is located 17 kilometres (11 mi) south-east of the city of Bushehr, between the fishing villages of Halileh and Bandargeh along the Persian Gulf. Construction started in 1975 by Kraftwerk Union AG, but was halted in July 1979 following the 1979 Iranian Revolution.[4] The reactor was damaged by Iraqi air strikes during the Iran-Iraq war in the mid-1980s. Construction resumed in 1995, when Iran signed a contract with Russian company Atomstroiexport to install into the existing Bushehr I building a 915 MWe VVER-1000 pressurized water reactor.[5][6] In December 2007 Russia started delivering nuclear fuel to the Bushehr nuclear power plant.[7] The construction was completed in March 2009.[8] The plant is planned to begin production by 22 August 2009, and would be brought up to full capacity by the end of March 2010.[9]

[edit] Chalus

In 1995 Iranian exiles living in Europe claimed Iran was building a secret facility for building nuclear weapons in a mountain 20 kilometres from the town of Chalus.[10] In October 2003 Mohamed ElBaradei announced that "In terms of inspections, so far, we have been allowed to visit those sites to which we have requested access". It therefore appears the allegations about the Chalus site were unfounded.[11]

[edit] Darkovin

Iran declared on March 6, 2007, that it has started construction of a domestically built nuclear power plant with capacity of 360 MW in Darkovin, in southwestern Iran.

[edit] Isfahan

The Nuclear Technology Center of Isfahan is a nuclear research facility that currently operates four small nuclear research reactors, all supplied by China. It is run by the AEOI.[12]

The Uranium Conversion Facility at Isfahan converts yellowcake into uranium hexafluoride. As of late October 2004, the site is 70% operational with 21 of 24 workshops completed. There is also a Zirconium Production Plant (ZPP) located nearby that produces the necessary ingredients and alloys for nuclear reactors.

[edit] Karaj

The Center for Agricultural Research and Nuclear Medicine at Hashtgerd was established in 1991 and is run by the AEOI. [1]

[edit] Lashkar Abad

Lashkar Abad is a pilot plant for isotope separation. Established in 2002, the site was first exposed by Alireza Jafarzadeh in May 2003 which led to the inspection of the site by the IAEA. Laser enrichment experiments were carried out there, however, the plant has been shut down since Iran declared it has no intentions of enriching uranium using the laser isotope separation technique.[2] In September 2006, Alireza Jafarzadeh claimed that the site has been revived by Iran and that laser enrichment has been taking place at this site. SPC

[edit] Lavizan

(35°46′23″N 51°29′52″E / 35.77306°N 51.49778°E / 35.77306; 51.49778) All buildings at the former Lavizan-Shian Technical Research Center site were demolished between August 2003 and March 2004. Environmental samples taken by IAEA inspectors showed no trace of radiation. The site is to be returned to the City of Teheran.[13]

According to Reuters, claims by the US that topsoil has been removed and the site had been sanitized could not be verified by IAEA investigators who visited Lavizan:

Washington accused Iran of removing a substantial amount of topsoil and rubble from the site and replacing it with a new layer of soil, in what U.S. officials said might have been an attempt to cover clandestine nuclear activity at Lavizan. Former U.S. ambassador to the IAEA, Kenneth Brill, accused Iran in June of using "the wrecking ball and bulldozer" to sanitize Lavizan prior to the arrival of U.N. inspectors. But another diplomat close to the IAEA told Reuters that on-site inspections of Lavizan produced no proof that any soil had been removed at all.

[edit] Natanz

President Ahmadinejad at Natanz in April 2008

(33°43′24.43″N 51°43′37.55″E / 33.7234528°N 51.7270972°E / 33.7234528; 51.7270972) Natanz is a hardened Fuel Enrichment Plant (FEP) covering 100,000 square meters that is built 8 meters underground and protected by a concrete wall 2.5 meters thick, itself protected by another concrete wall. In 2004, the roof was hardened with reinforced concrete and covered with 22 meters of earth. The complex consists of two 25,000 square meter halls and a number of administrative buildings. This once secret site was one of the two exposed by Alireza Jafarzadeh in August, 2002. IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei visited the site on 21 February 2003 and reported that 160 centrifuges were complete and ready for operation, with 1000 more under construction at the site.[14] Under the terms of Iran's safeguards agreement, Iran was under no obligation to report the existence of the site while it was still under construction. There are currently approximately 7,000 centrifuges installed at Natanz, of which 5,000 are producing low enriched uranium.[15]

[edit] Parchin

The Parchin Military Complex 35°31′N 51°46′E / 35.52°N 51.77°E / 35.52; 51.77 is not presently known to be a nuclear site. This was discovered on 1 November 2005, when the IAEA was given access to the site and environmental samples were taken. Inspectors did not observe any unusual activities in the buildings visited, and the results of the analysis of environmental samples did not indicate the presence of nuclear material.[16] Parchin is a facility for the testing and manufacturing of conventional explosives; IAEA safeguards inspectors were looking not for evidence of nuclear material, but of the kind of explosives testing consistent with nuclear weapons research and development.[17]

[edit] Qom

Qom is the site of a previously undeclared underground uranium enrichment facility at an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps base[18] revealed publicly on September 25, 2009 in a joint appearance by the leaders of the United States, France, and the United Kingdom.[19] Managed by the Atomic Energy Association of Iran, it was described as a "pilot fuel enrichment plant" by Iran and has a reported capacity of 3,000 centrifuges.[18] According to the Institute for Science and International Security, two possible locations of the facility are 34°53′05″N 50°59′45″E / 34.88459°N 50.99596°E / 34.88459; 50.99596 and 34°56′37″N 50°45′38″E / 34.94373°N 50.76056°E / 34.94373; 50.76056.[20]

[edit] Saghand

(32°28′45″N 55°24′30″E / 32.47917°N 55.40833°E / 32.47917; 55.40833) Location of Iran's first uranium ore mines, expected to become operational by March 2005. The deposit is estimated to contain 3,000 to 5,000 tons of uranium oxide at a density of about 500 ppm over an area of 100 to 150 square kilometers. [3]

[edit] Tehran

(35°44′18″N 51°23′18″E / 35.7384°N 51.3882°E / 35.7384; 51.3882) The Tehran Nuclear Research Center (TNRC) is managed by the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI). It is equipped with a U.S.-supplied 5-megawatt nuclear research reactor capable of producing 600 g of plutonium annually in spent fuel. 17 years production would be sufficient to make a single atomic bomb, however storage of the waste is closely monitored by the IAEA and extracting the plutonium is not possible while Iran maintains its status as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Also, the Supreme Leader of Iran's Islamic Republic, Ayatallah Ali Khamenei has issued a fatwa saying the production, stockpiling and use of nuclear weapons was forbidden under Islam, and thus for Iran's Islamic Republic.

The Plasma Physics Research Center of Islamic Azad University operates a Tokamak fusion reactor designated Iran Tokamak 1 (IR-T1).[21]

[edit] Yazd

Yazd Radiation Processing Center is equipped with a Rhodotron TT200 accelerator, made by IBA, Belgium, with outputs of 5 and 10MeV beam lines and a maximum power of 100 kW. As of 2006 the centre is engaged in geophysical research to analyze the mineral deposits surrounding the city and is expected to play an important role in supporting the medical and polymer industries.[22]

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ Arak, GlobalSecurity.org
  2. ^ Kim Howells (16 Jan 2006) ([dead link] – Scholar search), Written Answers to Questions - Iran, Hansard, Column 977W, http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmhansrd/vo060116/text/60116w26.htm#60116w26.html_wqn7, retrieved 2007-11-05 
  3. ^ "INFCIRC/696". IAEA. 6 March 2007. http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Documents/Infcircs/2007/infcirc696.pdf. Retrieved 2007-03-24. 
  4. ^ Bushehr: Fertigstellung des iranischen Kernkraftwerkes ist für Russland Ehrensache (German)
  5. ^ "Iran urges Russia to speed up Bushehr nuclear plant work". Forbes. 2006-05-12. http://www.forbes.com/work/feeds/afx/2006/05/12/afx2741403.html. Retrieved 2006-06-03. 
  6. ^ "Technical events to be held at Bushehr nuclear plant – Atomstroiexport". ITAR-TASS. 2008-09-08. http://itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=13050977. Retrieved 2008-10-17. 
  7. ^ Russia delivers nuclear fuel to Iran. CNN. 17 December 2007
  8. ^ Iran's Bushehr NPP no threat to its neighbors - experts RIA Novosti 2009-05-13
  9. ^ Iran counts on Russia for September launch of nuclear plant RIA Novosti 2009-03-10
  10. ^ "Tehran's Magic Mountain". US and World News Report. 1995. http://www.usnews.com/usnews/politics/whispers/articles/950501/archive_010777_2.htm. Retrieved 2006-05-28. 
  11. ^ "IRAN TO ACCEPT INTERNATIONAL INSPECTIONS EVEN ON MILITARY SITES". Iran Press Service. http://www.iran-press-service.com/articles_2003/Oct-2003/iaea_iran_161003.html. Retrieved 2006-08-26. 
  12. ^ Esfahan / Isfahan - Iran Special Weapons Facilities
  13. ^ "Iran tried to acquire nuclear equipment at suspect Lavizan site: UN agency". Iran Focus. http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=751. Retrieved 2006-04-23. 
  14. ^ Pike, John (2006). "Natanz [Kashan]". GlobalSecurity.org. http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/iran/natanz.htm. Retrieved 2006-05-28. 
  15. ^ http://www.isisnucleariran.org/assets/pdf/Iran_IAEA_Report_Analysis_5June2009.pdf
  16. ^ "Transparency Visits and Discussions" (PDF). Implementation of the NPT Safeguards Agreement in the Islamic Republic of Iran. International Atomic Energy Agency. 2006. http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Documents/Board/2006/gov2006-15.pdf. Retrieved 2006-05-28. 
  17. ^ http://www.isisnucleariran.org/sites/detail/parchin/
  18. ^ a b "Iran Denounced Over Secret Nuclear Plant". The Wall Street Journal. 2009-09-25. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125386629947940443.html. Retrieved 2009-09-25. 
  19. ^ Sanger, David E. (2009-09-25). "Iran Confirms Existence of Nuclear Plant". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/26/world/middleeast/26nuke.html?hp. Retrieved 2009-09-25. 
  20. ^ "Satellite Imagery of Two Possible Sites of the Qom Enrichment Facility in Iran". Institute for Science and International Security. 2009-09-25. http://www.isis-online.org/publications/iran/Qom_Imagery_Brief_25Sept2009.pdf. Retrieved 2009-09-26. 
  21. ^ Dr. Farhang Jahanpour (2006). "Chronology of Iran's Nuclear Program". Oxford Research Group. http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/programs/globalsecurity/iranchronology.htm. Retrieved 2006-09-25. 
  22. ^ "Yazd Radiation Processing Center (YRPC)". Nuclear Threat Initiative. 2006. http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/Iran/3119_3270.html. Retrieved 2006-09-25. 

[edit] External links

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