Iran enlarges uranium stockpile by 60 percent

Iran is building its stockpile of uranium, which it can quickly enrich and turn into weapons-grade material.

Iran will have 60-percent more stockpiled uranium than it did prior to the controversial 2015 nuclear deal after a shipment of 149 tons of yellow cake arrives later this week.

Ali Akbar Salehi, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), announced that the import will be completed on Tuesday.

“The first of the four cargos of yellow cake was imported to Iran on January 26 and God willing, the fourth cargo will arrive in the country on Tuesday, February 7, and totally, 149 tons of yellow cake will be added to the country’s reserves,” Salehi told Iran’s Fars News on Monday.

Salehi claimed that Iran’s importing of 210 tons of yellow cake in the past year is concurrent with the implementation of the nuclear deal. “This 149 tons added to the 210 tons which had been imported before will make 359 tons, a part of which was received for the 3.5 percent enriched uranium that we had exported,” he said.

Under the nuclear accord, Iran’s import of uranium is supervised by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

“Our yellow cake reserves have increased nearly 60%,” Salehi added.

Low-enriched uranium can be used for civilian applications, including power generation and medical research. Highly enriched uranium can be used for nuclear weapons. Iran has the technology to enrich uranium.

Iran and the world powers reached a nuclear deal in July 2015, which lifted sanctions against Tehran and set certain limitations on Tehran’s nuclear technology.

Based on the deal, the Islamic Republic exported enriched UF6 and imported yellow cake from abroad.

By: World Israel News Staff