Iran enriched uranium stockpile 14 times over the limit of deal: IAEA

Vienna - The limit in the 2015 deal was set at 300 kilos.

By AFP

Published: Tue 23 Feb 2021, 10:16 PM

Last updated: Tue 23 Feb 2021, 10:43 PM

Iran is producing highly-enriched uranium faster than called for by the law under which it started the process of enriching to 20 per cent fissile purity last month, diplomats and a report by the UN nuclear watchdog on Tuesday said.

As part of a recent acceleration of its breaches of its 2015 nuclear deal with major powers, Iran has begun refining uranium to 20 per cent at Fordow, a site that was built in secret inside a mountain where the deal says Iran cannot enrich at all.

Until last month Iran had not enriched beyond 4.5 per cent purity - above the deal's limit of 3.67 per cent but still far below the 20 per cent it achieved before the deal, or the 90 per cent that is weapons-grade. Uranium is considered highly enriched as of 20 per cent.

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"They are producing 15 kg a month of uranium enriched to 20 per cent. That is their production rate," a senior diplomat said.

Recent legislation that required Iran to start enriching to 20 per cent stipulated that at least 120 kg (265 pounds) of uranium refined to that level be produced each year, which amounts to 10 kg a month.

A second diplomat said Iran was "slightly above" the target of 10 kg a month.

A quarterly report on Iran's nuclear activities by the U.N. nuclear watchdog on Tuesday obtained by Reuters said that as of Feb. 16 Iran had produced 17.6 kg of uranium enriched up to 20 per cent, with the next level down being enriched between 2 per cent-5 per cent.

Iran's overall stockpile of enriched uranium grew by 524.9 kg to 2,967.8 kg in the quarter, far above the 2015 deal's 202.8 kg stockpile limit though still a fraction of the more than eight tonnes Iran had prior to the deal.