OCR Text |
Show Sunday September 5. 2004 DAILY HERALD A10 Iran to extract its own uranium in early 2008 Ali Akbar Dareini THE ASSOCIATED PRESS . Iran will SAGHAND, Iran begin extracting uranhun from deep under its central desert in less than two years, an official told The Associated Press on Saturday during an unprecedented tour of the country's uranium mine. Iran maintains its nuclear ambitions are purely peaceful, despite U.S. charges it seeks nuclear weapons, and is pressing ahead with plans to control the whole nuclear fuel cycle from mining uranium ore to enriching uranium to be used in reactors. d Saturday's tour of the mine, some 300 miles south of Tehran, was the first . time Iran has allowed an international news agency to visit a site related to its highly ambi- - '. tious program to develop the entire fuel cycle, from extracting uranium ore to enriching nuclear fuel Iran wants to prove it has nothing hide, but serious questions have been raised about its nuclear program. Iran's critics argue that a country that controls the fuel cycle will inevitably be able to ' Sag-han- ' produce a nuclear bomb if or when it decides to do so. The AP learned earlier this week that Iran told the UjN. International Atomic Energy Agency it was planning to process more than,40 tons of uranium into uranium hexafluo-rid- e gas. The gas if enriched would produce enough material for four or five nuclear warheads, according to experts. Such gas can. also be enriched to make fuel for an electricity producing reactor. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said in response that Washington would urge the IAEA at its board meeting this month to refer Iran to the UN. Security Council for possible sanctions. The European Union was also concerned by the report of Iran's processing plans, saying it could not accept the development of weapons grade uranium by Iran. The Iranians say they do not have the technology uranito make weapons-grad- e um, but experts say they could. President Mohammad Khatami first announced in February 2003 that his country would mine uranium at Saghand, saying then that Iran was "determined to make use of advanced leadership wants things speeded up, but there was no sugges-tio- n that political leaders in Tehran want that to happen, Soleimani said a few tens have already been extracted from the open pit for testing at a yellowcake production plant currently under construction in Ardakan, another dry in cen' tral Iran. . The underground mine has two shafts, each more than 1,000 feet deep. A giant lifts takes engineers and workers at high speed down the main concrete shaft, which later splits off into several branches. The core of the mine covers an area of just under a square mile. Mahdi Kabirizadeh, who is in charge of Saghand project, said 220 engineers and workers, all Iranian, were at work in his nuclear technology for peaceful purposes." Few details of the activities at Saghand have emerged since then. "We will be able to extract uranium ore in the first half of 2006 from Saghand mine. More than 77 percent of the work has been accomplished," Ghasem diSoleimani, the British-traine- d rector of mining operations at the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said at the mine Saturday. He said the mine will feed Iran's uranium enrichment plant at Natanz, in central Iran. Iran also has a facility in Isfahan, another city in central Iran, that converts uranium powder, called yellowcake, into hexaflouride gas and is building uranium centrifuges, which are used to enrich uranium. Saghand consists of an open, pit with minimal reserves and a deep mine reached by two shafts. The total estimated reserves were 1,73 million tons of uranium ore, of "average" or medium quality of 553 parts per million. The mine has a capacity of 132,000 tons of uranium ore per year. Soleimani said uranium could be extracted from the shafts as early as mid 2005 if the Iranian v -- mine. Chinese experts had been at work here until 2002 helping dig and providing some technol- . ogy, he said. "We are now totally independent," he said. IAEA inspectors visited Saghand in February, 1992 and found uranium drilling rigs staffed by fewer than two dozen workers. The nuclear watchdog has not visited since then. RONALD ZAKAssodated Press a senior adviser to Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, stands in this September 2003 fUe photo in Vienna, Austria. Satehi said Thursday that Iran's nuclear plans were not a secret and they were peaceful in nature. AO Akbar SatehL 1 SHOP TODAY 12 NOON-- 6 P.M. MONDAY 9 A.M.-- 9 P.M. n ill; I ''i . UP TO 75 I OFF ST0REWIDE! Ladies', Petites' . Up to 75$ OFFDillard's $9.99 Ladies', Petites' $9.99 Ladies' ' V . & OFF Entire Stock of Ladies' & Spring & Summer Suits 75 & Woman Westbound Tees, Orig. $1 I Dillard's Woman Apparel & .fti$ 6-$- 3; OFF Ladies', Petites' 75 Petites" Knit Tops, Woman Orig. $24-$3- 9 From 499 South, Hampshire & Sportswear Frorn In Studio, Emma more. OFF Entire Stock of Ladies', Petites' & Dillard's Woman Spring & Summer Dresses From 75 & Poplin Capris & Periscope. from Copper Key, Zinc 5 OFF Collections prom Rampage, Soul Mates OFF Woven Tops Copper Key, Fang & Angte. & 75 Periscope. OFF Social & From Jump!, Morgan Ladies' Accessories rr--Q to 75 Up Up to 75 $7.99 Activizers Slippers, 75 OFF Entire Stock of Boys' Class Club Shorts 75 OFF Boys' From And 1 , 3-- 20 75 3-- 20 75 OFF Boys' Reversible Shorts 75 Collections 3-- 16 75 OFF Boys' & Girls' Famous American Designer Collections Activewear Nike & D.A.C. 3-- 20 OFF Girls' 75 OFF Infant Boys' Playwear Slam Dunk & & Ladies' & Men's In Provo, at Provo Towne r Ussw-- ' &AHfW4 v jaj8vW--aujj- Sleepwear 50 OFF Spring Gifts OFF Bechamel Patio Dresses $59.99 more. 75 & OFF Ladies' Straw Hats Handbags 75 Special Buy Anne Klein NY Watches. Orig. Young Men's Apparel Up to 75 OFF & $9.99 Roundtree & Yorke Summer Sportshirts, 75 66 Knit 50 OFF Denim Designer Tees OFF Famous Designer Denim Collections 75 OFF Roundtree & Yorke Woven Orig. $32 75 Kids' Swimwear Does not include 2005 Preview Swim. ALL MERCHANDISE IS SELECTED, UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. Sale prices are Off Of original prices. Shoes are styles only. Selection varies by store. Limited to stock on hand. Basic, merchandise is not included. Sorry, no price adjustments given on previous purchases. We cannot accept phone or mail orders on clearance merchandise. $18-$2-8 necnaces Barse, Napier Men's Juniors' Swimwear & & From Girls' Shoes & Sandals off & Club Dresses & Co. & more. $95-$15- ENTIRE STOCK OF Ladies' Spring Orig. OFF Ladies' Sleepwear . .. Urr tarnngs ; Sportshirts OFF Oak Creek Side-Elast- ic Pants OFF Varsity Sportswear Look for our home r insert in today's paper' for great savings & values! Home delivery only. 10-Shop Tuesday-Saturd- ay Sunday 12-- 6 and Latw Day WatanDUImTalocatlona. In Salt Lake City at Fashion Placa and South Town Cantaf. In Ogdan, at Nawgata MalL hi Logan, at Cacha Vallay MalL In St Gaorga, We welcome your Dillard's Credit Card, The American Express Card, Diners Club International, Mastercard? Visaf and The Discover Card. Cwtih. wy4,i&-iftf- r m ?. San OFF Children's Apparel OFF & In Francisco. OFF Casual Pants From Copper Key, Rewind OFF OFF Twill OFF Screen Tees Fromfyeshadow, Fang.& Realitee.' 75 more. 75 OFF Ladies', Petites' & Dillard's Woman Westbound Shorts 75 S & Woman Juniors' Apparel Up tp75 N James Dillard's OFF Ladies', Petites' & Dillard's Westbound Capris 75 75 & aLut- ftaeitfahai-a?- - r&atThWfrwt.5wf at Red Cliffs I 0 |