By JACQUELINE W. SHIRE
Sources with knowledge of Iran’s nuclear program tell ABC News that a senior Iranian official notified the IAEA verbally over the weekend of its intention to introduce uranium hexafluoride gas, or UF6, into centrifuges at a facility in Natanz, 150 miles south of Tehran.
Introducing UF6 into centrifuges is the necessary step in producing enriched uranium. The centrifuges work by separating out uranium-235 atoms, which can be used to make nuclear weapons and also to fuel nuclear reactors, from heavier uranium-238 atoms.
Warnings of a ‘Red Line’
The enrichment of any uranium by Iran, even in small quantities, amounts to a significant ratcheting up of the tension between Iran and the international community over its nuclear program, and the final abrogation of the November 2004 agreement with the European Union that suspended much of Iran’s nuclear activity.
Iran has been warned by the United States, Britain, France and Germany that any enrichment of nuclear fuel would constitute a “red line” it must not cross, or risk swift referral of the matter to the IAEA’s governing board, and from there to the United Nations Security Council.
Long-time Iran observers are taken aback by the boldness of Iran’s move.
“When we learned last week that Iran was going to resume some ‘research and development’ work at Natanz, we assumed there would be some modest initial activity, such as the production of centrifuge components, but this is a much bigger step,” said Robert Einhorn a former assistant secretary of state for nonproliferation who is now with the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Einhorn added that mastering the operation of a 164-centrifuge cascade such as the one at Iran’s Natanz facility is a “significant milestone” giving Iran important experience in overcoming the technical hurdles of uranium enrichment that can be transferred to larger cascades.
Iran has maintained steadfastly its right to enrich uranium domestically, though it has promised to consider seriously a Russian proposal to establish a Russian-Iranian joint venture under which Russia would enrich uranium for Iran’s use in nuclear reactors it seeks to build.
The Middle East nation publicly confirmed today it would resume nuclear fuel research, but the decision to actually begin enriching uranium represents a much more significant step.
An official from the IAEA would not confirm that Iran has discussed the use of UF6 in the centrifuges at Natanz, saying the agency is “still seeking detailed clarification as to what precisely Iran intends to do”
The centrifuges at Natanz are not immediately ready for the UF6 and would require some further assembly before the uranium gas could be introduced.
Experts familiar with Iran’s centrifuge efforts believe they could be made ready within days, but it could take many years for Iran to produce a sufficient amount of enriched uranium for a nuclear bomb, given their existing centrifuge capabilities.
The amount of time Iran would need to produce enough enriched uranium for a bomb depends on several factors, including the enrichment level of the uranium gas used in the cascade and the power of the centrifuges. According to a report published by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, it could take Iran more than 10 years to produce 25 kilograms of 93 percent enriched high-enriched uranium using the 164 centrifuges it has currently at Natanz.
This time could be shortened to as little as two years if Iran uses UF6 that is already slightly enriched, according to the institute, or if the power of the centrifuges is increased.
