Attempts to redesign the Arak Heavy Water reactor in Iran are starting
to pick up pace. The secondary section of the reactor is in the process
of being brought online. Iranian officials say they expect it to be
operational “as early as the next three weeks.”
Iran had to redesign the
Arak reactor as part of the P5+1 nuclear deal. The new version is
designed to produce much less plutonium in its waste, which was a result
of Western complaints that the plutonium might be further processed
into a weapon.
The redesign is set, and this secondary section is meant to handle most
of the nuclear processes at the facility. There is still no official
timeline for bringing the reactor fully online, but clearly it is moving
closer.
The heavy water reactor is meant to replace the Tehran Research Reactor
(TRR), an extremely aged US-made site that produces medical isotopes.
The TRR uses high (20%) enriched uranium fuel, which was not always easy
to come by, while Arak is intended to use heavy water and unenriched
uranium.
Iranian nuclear official Ali Akbar Salehi said that the government is
“satisfied” with the new progress being made, and wants to pick up the
pace on Arak after previous delays.
Iran Says Arak Heavy Water Reactor Section Will Be Operational Soon
Officials want section operational in three weeks
Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.
Join the Discussion!
We welcome thoughtful and respectful comments. Hateful language, illegal content, or attacks against Antiwar.com will be removed.
For more details, please see our Comment Policy.
