Opinion Contributor
Moscow's American uranium
The state-owned Russian nuclear energy company that built Iran’s
nuclear reactor in Bushehr is about to finalize a transaction that will
give Russia absolute control over one of America’s largest uranium
mining sites.
On Oct. 18, nuclear energy juggernaut Rosatom will complete a corporate deal
giving it 100 percent control over Canada-based uranium mining company
Uranium One, including the company’s U.S. operations in Wyoming, the
epicenter of U.S. uranium production. Moscow’s acquisition of Uranium
One will also provide Rosatom — the world’s leading builder of nuclear
power plants — with uranium exploration rights in Arizona, Colorado, and Utah.
Rosatom, which handed Iran the keys
to the Bushehr nuclear reactor just a few weeks ago, is not yet
finished with its work in the Islamic Republic. Following a meeting
between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan
Rouhani in September 2013, Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi announced
that Tehran and Moscow will cooperate in the future construction of a
second nuclear power plant at Bushehr, adding that “construction work is
to start soon.”
Rosatom’s nuclear projects also include ventures with China and Venezuela, two countries with less-than-friendly relations with the United States. Russian news agencies also quoted
Syrian president Bashar al-Assad in May 2010 as saying that he
discussed with then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev the possibility of
building nuclear power plants in Syria.
To put it mildly, with a client roster like this, questions abound
regarding Rosatom’s acquisition of Uranium One. When Rosatom acquired
its first controlling shares in 2010, the deal came under congressional fire.
Representatives Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla), Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.),
Peter King (R-N.Y.), and Buck McKeon (R-Calif.) penned a letter
to then-Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner warning that “signing over
control of this U.S. uranium processing facility to the Russian
government unnecessarily jeopardizes U.S. security interests.”
In the end, however, the sale of the initial majority stake in
Uranium One was approved by the Committee on Foreign Investments in the
United States (CFIUS) and the United States Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC). The NRC’s only caveat was to bar Uranium One from exporting any of the produced material without prior approval.
Fast-forward three years, and the proposed transfer of 100 percent
control of Uranium One to Rosatom has barely elicited a peep from
Congress or the administration. Nor has it raised an eyebrow in Ottawa.
In March, Rosatom received approval
from the Supreme Court of Ontario, Canada. And because Rosatom’s new
deal involves the same parties as the 2010 transaction, does not change
the corporate structure of Uranium One, and does not alter Rosatom’s
already-held majority control over Uranium One, Rosatom was able to bypass the need for additional approval by CFIUS and the NRC for the 2013 transaction.
While the American regulatory regime is a trusted system, the regime
in Moscow is not. Russia has a history of transferring dangerous
materials and technologies to rogue regimes, and Rosatom, according to a
2007 report on
nuclear nonproliferation by the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO),
“denied [GAO’s] request for access to facilities under its control.”
Uranium One in 2010 issued assurances that “none of the uranium produced in the US will be used by Rosatom to fuel the Iran reactor.” It
is now crucial, in light of this new deal, that Rosatom provide
additional guarantees that none of the uranium produced or revenue
generated from its U.S. operations will be used for nuclear
proliferation in Iran, China, Venezuela, Syria, or any other rogue
states on Rosatom’s roster.
In the meantime, Congress and the administration should look into
whether Rosatom has engaged in any proliferation related to weapons of
mass destruction, and thus be subject to sanctions, specifically Executive Order 13382, which sanctions persons engaged in weapons-related proliferation activities and their support networks.
Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) reaffirmed Uranium One’s commitment
that it “has no plans to export Wyoming uranium to Russia, or any other
country that may not share US interests.” But given Russia’s track
record, can we trust Rosatom to play by our rules?
Matt Baker is an associate for policy and special projects at the
Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington, D.C.-based policy
institute focusing on national security.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/10/moscows-american-uranium-98472.html#ixzz2i8pnUeFj
Russian Company Gets Wyoming Uranium Mine, Lacks Export License
By Jim Snyder -
Dec 7, 2010 4:22 AM GMT+0700
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-06/russian-company-gets-wyoming-uranium-mine-lacks-export-license.html
A Russian company that took control
of uranium mines in Wyoming is barred from exporting produced
material and executives at U.S.-based subsidiaries will remain
in charge, according to a Nuclear Regulatory Commission report.
ARMZ, the uranium-holding unit of Russia’s state-owned nuclear-energy group Rosatom Corp. in Moscow, announced a partial takeover of Uranium One Inc. of Vancouver, Canada, this year. U.S. agencies including the Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved the deal.
Federal oversight of the nuclear industry should allay national security concerns that a foreign power would control uranium production, Nick Carter, vice president for Uranium of Ux Consulting in Roswell, Georgia, said in an interview.
“I don’t think that it should be a huge concern,” Carter said after the Financial Times today reported the deal may give ARMZ control of more than half of U.S. uranium production. Ux is a nuclear consulting company that provides data on uranium prices.
The NRC safety-evaluation report concluded that “day-to- day project development, operations and any decommissioning activities” at mines in the Irigaray/Christensen Ranch and Moore Ranch in Wyoming will be made by Uranium One’s two U.S.- based subsidiaries, Uranium One USA Inc. and Uranium One Americas Inc.
The regulatory commission has required ARMZ to notify regulators of any personnel changes at the company’s U.S. mines.
The agency said Uranium One and ARMZ lack a license to export nuclear fuel, and material from the mine must be used in the U.S. Most uranium used to generate U.S. nuclear power is imported, Carter said.
The Irigaray/Christensen Ranch mine in northeast Wyoming, which is idle, will be able to produce about 1.3 million pounds when it reopens, increasing to 2.5 million pounds, he said.
Uranium Production
The U.S. produces about 4.4 million pounds of uranium a year, Carter said.
Carter said ARMZ production capacity probably won’t exceed a third of the U.S. total because other mines are planning to open or boost production as uranium prices per-pound rise to more than $60 from $40 this summer.
Julian Steyn, a partner at Energy Resources International Inc., a consulting firm in Washington, said Uranium One’s assets in Kazakhstan made the company attractive. The U.S. produces about 3 percent of the world’s uranium.
“They didn’t buy it because of the U.S.,” Steyn said. “Kazakhstan is the big gorilla. It wasn’t a cunning, scheming Russian thing.”
The Committee of Foreign Investment in the United States, a federal agency composed of officials from agencies including the Treasury Department, reviews foreign purchases that raise concerns about national security.
Natalie Wyeth, a Treasury Department spokeswoman, said the department doesn’t comment on the activities of the committee.
To contact the reporter on this story: Jim Snyder in Washington at jsnyder24@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Larry Liebert at lliebert@bloomberg.net.
ARMZ, the uranium-holding unit of Russia’s state-owned nuclear-energy group Rosatom Corp. in Moscow, announced a partial takeover of Uranium One Inc. of Vancouver, Canada, this year. U.S. agencies including the Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved the deal.
Federal oversight of the nuclear industry should allay national security concerns that a foreign power would control uranium production, Nick Carter, vice president for Uranium of Ux Consulting in Roswell, Georgia, said in an interview.
“I don’t think that it should be a huge concern,” Carter said after the Financial Times today reported the deal may give ARMZ control of more than half of U.S. uranium production. Ux is a nuclear consulting company that provides data on uranium prices.
The NRC safety-evaluation report concluded that “day-to- day project development, operations and any decommissioning activities” at mines in the Irigaray/Christensen Ranch and Moore Ranch in Wyoming will be made by Uranium One’s two U.S.- based subsidiaries, Uranium One USA Inc. and Uranium One Americas Inc.
The regulatory commission has required ARMZ to notify regulators of any personnel changes at the company’s U.S. mines.
The agency said Uranium One and ARMZ lack a license to export nuclear fuel, and material from the mine must be used in the U.S. Most uranium used to generate U.S. nuclear power is imported, Carter said.
The Irigaray/Christensen Ranch mine in northeast Wyoming, which is idle, will be able to produce about 1.3 million pounds when it reopens, increasing to 2.5 million pounds, he said.
Uranium Production
The U.S. produces about 4.4 million pounds of uranium a year, Carter said.
Carter said ARMZ production capacity probably won’t exceed a third of the U.S. total because other mines are planning to open or boost production as uranium prices per-pound rise to more than $60 from $40 this summer.
Julian Steyn, a partner at Energy Resources International Inc., a consulting firm in Washington, said Uranium One’s assets in Kazakhstan made the company attractive. The U.S. produces about 3 percent of the world’s uranium.
“They didn’t buy it because of the U.S.,” Steyn said. “Kazakhstan is the big gorilla. It wasn’t a cunning, scheming Russian thing.”
The Committee of Foreign Investment in the United States, a federal agency composed of officials from agencies including the Treasury Department, reviews foreign purchases that raise concerns about national security.
Natalie Wyeth, a Treasury Department spokeswoman, said the department doesn’t comment on the activities of the committee.
To contact the reporter on this story: Jim Snyder in Washington at jsnyder24@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Larry Liebert at lliebert@bloomberg.net.
4 GOP leaders warn of uranium mine sale
Russian agency would take over
- **FILE** House Armed Services Committee member Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (Associated Press) more >
Question of the Day
Will U.S. debt hit $20 trillion before President Obama leaves office?
Four leading House Republicans, citing national security concerns, are urging Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner to block the sale of a Wyoming-based uranium mine to an arm of the Russian government’s main nuclear agency.
The lawmakers are raising alarm over the proposed sale of a Powder River Basin, Wyoming-based uranium processing facility operated by Uranium One USA, a Canadian-based company, to Atomredmetzoloto, a subsidiary of the Russian government agency Rosatom, according to a letter obtained Tuesday by The Washington Times.
The sale was first announced on Aug. 31, and the lawmakers claim that it could give Moscow control of up to 20 percent of the U.S. national uranium extraction capability and a controlling interest in one of the country’s largest uranium mining sites.
The GOP opposition to the business deal is the first major political clash over foreign investment in a sensitive U.S. industry since the fight over Dubai Ports World in 2006. In that clash, bipartisan outrage on Capitol Hill erupted when the George W. Bush administration tentatively approved the purchase of contracts to manage six major U.S. seaports by the company based in the United Arab Emirates.
This time, the proposed sale presents a test for President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton of their hopes to “reset” relations with Russia on a wide range of fronts.
On one key issue, Rose Gottemoeller, the State Department’s assistant secretary in charge of arms control issues, confirmed in remarks to reporters in New York on Monday that the administration is pushing for ratification of a major new strategic arms pact with Russia in the Senate lame-duck session expected after the midterm vote.
Some Republicans still have questions about the administration’s approach in the deal struck earlier this year, but Obama officials are pressing for a vote “as soon as possible,” Ms. Gottemoeller said.
The letter questioning the uranium deal was sent Tuesday by four Republicans: Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, Spencer Bachus of Alabama, Peter T. King of New York and Howard P. “Buck” McKeon of California. Those members are, respectively, the ranking minority members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the House Financial Services Committee, the House Homeland Security Committee, and the House Armed Services Committee.
If Republicans win control of the House in the Nov. 2 midterm elections, the four members are in line to be chairmen of committees that would have potential oversight of the sale.
A fact sheet on the website of Uranium One says the company intends to complete the transaction by the end of the year. The Russian concern already owns a 23.1 percent share of Uranium One’s common stock and is seeking a controlling 51 percent share in the subsidiary.
The fact sheet notes that the sale still must be approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States — the federal interagency body that looks at the national security implications of foreign investments. It played a central role in the Dubai Ports World controversy.
A spokeswoman for the Treasury Department did not provide comment by press time. A spokesman for Uranium One also did not return requests for comment by press time.
The lawmakers said in their letter that Rosatom, the Russian government nuclear agency, has “shown little if any inclination to effectively address the widespread and continuing corruption within Russia, particularly its energy sector.”
They also express concern that Rosatom in the past has been involved in energy deals with Iran, including design work and the training of Iranian scientists for the Bushehr nuclear power plant that went online in August.
Rosatom also has worked closely with Burmese scientists over U.S. objections.
Uranium One USA has dismissed fears that the deal would compromise U.S. security goals or indirectly aid the nuclear programs of regimes hostile to the United States.
Donna Wichers, a senior vice president of Uranium One USA, told the Billings Gazette last month, “I have confirmed with our management that none of the uranium produced in the U.S. will be used by Rosatom to fuel the Iran reactor.”
The lawmakers said the deal still raises serious questions.
They wrote: “Although Uranium One USA officials are reportedly skeptical that the transaction would result in the transfer of any mined uranium to Iran, we remain concerned that Iran could receive uranium supplies through direct or secondary proliferation.”
Henry Sokolski, executive director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center, said the sale to Rosatom could be Russia’s opening move to get into the U.S. nuclear power market.
“Why would Russia, which already has plenty of uranium of its own, want to buy more?” Mr. Sokolski asked. “There have been rumors that Rosatom wants to build a large uranium enrichment plant to sell nuclear fuel for U.S. civil power reactors. If so, the company is almost certain to ask for U.S. federal loan guarantees, which the French and Dutch have already done.”
Mr. Sokolski added, “In this case, you have got to believe that some of the security concerns raised in the letter, and others as well, could prompt [Congress to impose] conditions for approving such a loan.”
The lawmakers are raising alarm over the proposed sale of a Powder River Basin, Wyoming-based uranium processing facility operated by Uranium One USA, a Canadian-based company, to Atomredmetzoloto, a subsidiary of the Russian government agency Rosatom, according to a letter obtained Tuesday by The Washington Times.
The sale was first announced on Aug. 31, and the lawmakers claim that it could give Moscow control of up to 20 percent of the U.S. national uranium extraction capability and a controlling interest in one of the country’s largest uranium mining sites.
The GOP opposition to the business deal is the first major political clash over foreign investment in a sensitive U.S. industry since the fight over Dubai Ports World in 2006. In that clash, bipartisan outrage on Capitol Hill erupted when the George W. Bush administration tentatively approved the purchase of contracts to manage six major U.S. seaports by the company based in the United Arab Emirates.
This time, the proposed sale presents a test for President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton of their hopes to “reset” relations with Russia on a wide range of fronts.
On one key issue, Rose Gottemoeller, the State Department’s assistant secretary in charge of arms control issues, confirmed in remarks to reporters in New York on Monday that the administration is pushing for ratification of a major new strategic arms pact with Russia in the Senate lame-duck session expected after the midterm vote.
Some Republicans still have questions about the administration’s approach in the deal struck earlier this year, but Obama officials are pressing for a vote “as soon as possible,” Ms. Gottemoeller said.
The letter questioning the uranium deal was sent Tuesday by four Republicans: Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, Spencer Bachus of Alabama, Peter T. King of New York and Howard P. “Buck” McKeon of California. Those members are, respectively, the ranking minority members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the House Financial Services Committee, the House Homeland Security Committee, and the House Armed Services Committee.
If Republicans win control of the House in the Nov. 2 midterm elections, the four members are in line to be chairmen of committees that would have potential oversight of the sale.
A fact sheet on the website of Uranium One says the company intends to complete the transaction by the end of the year. The Russian concern already owns a 23.1 percent share of Uranium One’s common stock and is seeking a controlling 51 percent share in the subsidiary.
The fact sheet notes that the sale still must be approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States — the federal interagency body that looks at the national security implications of foreign investments. It played a central role in the Dubai Ports World controversy.
A spokeswoman for the Treasury Department did not provide comment by press time. A spokesman for Uranium One also did not return requests for comment by press time.
The lawmakers said in their letter that Rosatom, the Russian government nuclear agency, has “shown little if any inclination to effectively address the widespread and continuing corruption within Russia, particularly its energy sector.”
They also express concern that Rosatom in the past has been involved in energy deals with Iran, including design work and the training of Iranian scientists for the Bushehr nuclear power plant that went online in August.
Rosatom also has worked closely with Burmese scientists over U.S. objections.
Uranium One USA has dismissed fears that the deal would compromise U.S. security goals or indirectly aid the nuclear programs of regimes hostile to the United States.
Donna Wichers, a senior vice president of Uranium One USA, told the Billings Gazette last month, “I have confirmed with our management that none of the uranium produced in the U.S. will be used by Rosatom to fuel the Iran reactor.”
The lawmakers said the deal still raises serious questions.
They wrote: “Although Uranium One USA officials are reportedly skeptical that the transaction would result in the transfer of any mined uranium to Iran, we remain concerned that Iran could receive uranium supplies through direct or secondary proliferation.”
Henry Sokolski, executive director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center, said the sale to Rosatom could be Russia’s opening move to get into the U.S. nuclear power market.
“Why would Russia, which already has plenty of uranium of its own, want to buy more?” Mr. Sokolski asked. “There have been rumors that Rosatom wants to build a large uranium enrichment plant to sell nuclear fuel for U.S. civil power reactors. If so, the company is almost certain to ask for U.S. federal loan guarantees, which the French and Dutch have already done.”
Mr. Sokolski added, “In this case, you have got to believe that some of the security concerns raised in the letter, and others as well, could prompt [Congress to impose] conditions for approving such a loan.”
Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/oct/5/4-gop-leaders-warn-of-uranium-mine-sale/#ixzz2i8yNPqLe
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter
Iran takes control of Bushehr nuclear reactor
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/09/22/iran-takes-control-bushehr-nuclear-reactor/
-
The reactor building at the Russian-built Bushehr nuclear plant, pictured October 26, 2013. (AFP/File) -
Iran's atomic agency chief, Ali Akbar, Salehi, pictured September 16, 2013, at the UN atomic agency HQ in Vienna. (AFP/File) -
A Russian technician inside the Bushehr nuclear power plant in southern Iran, on October 26, 2010. (FARS NEWS AGENCY/AFP/File)
TEHRAN (AFP) – Iran on Monday
finally takes control of its civilian nuclear reactor at Bushehr on the
Gulf coast, a project begun 35 years ago by Germany, wracked by
setbacks, and finished by Russia.
The Islamic republic's atomic agency chief Ali Akbar Salehi confirmed on Sunday that Russia would hand over the 1,000-megawatt plant Monday.
He also said he expected work to start soon on a second plant upon completion of talks with Moscow, saying: "Negotiations are continuing and are well-advanced."
"Work will start soon," he added, without saying when.
Construction of the Bushehr facility began in the 1970s with the help of German company Siemens, which quit the project after the 1979 Islamic revolution over concerns about nuclear proliferation.
Work was also hampered by the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war, before Russia agreed in 1994 to take up the construction baton of the plant due originally for completion in 1999.
Moscow also agreed to provide its fuel for 10 years, with the supply deal committing Tehran to returning the spent fuel, amid Western concerns over its controversial uranium enrichment programme.
Bushehr was finally finished more than a decade late and inaugurated in 2010, but it did not come into service until 2011 because of technical problems.
Some Iranian officials accused Russia of foot-dragging under pressure from the United States, which had sought in vain to prevent the project from reaching fruition.
Tehran's atomic ambitions have been at the heart of its troubled relations with world powers for years.
Israel and the West suspect that Iran's declared peaceful programme of uranium enrichment masks a covert nuclear weapons drive, a charge vehemently denied in Tehran.
Construction of the Bushehr facility, located east across Gulf waters from southern Kuwait, has sparked concern among Gulf Arab states, but both Iran and Russia say it is subject to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards.
Salehi will join Russian officials at the plant for Monday's official handover ceremony.
The official IRNA news agency quoted him as saying on Sunday that "for another two years it will be under Russian guarantee and a number of Russian experts will remain in place to give advice and technical assistance".
Bushehr, under the control of the UN watchdog the IAEA, was finished by Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom.
Foreign experts say Tehran attaches great importance to Monday's handover, as it illustrates its self-sufficiency in harnessing civilian nuclear power, no longer dependent on outside help.
But neighbouring nations and the West have concerns about Bushehr, given its location in an earthquake-prone zone on the Gulf, especially since Japan's Fukushima disaster of 2011.
As the crow flies, the plant is far closer to Iran's neighbours than it is to its own capital, one foreign diplomat pointed out, adding: "The prevailing winds go towards Dubai, and marine currents towards Kuwait."
Iran sits astride several major fault lines and is prone to frequent earthquakes, some of which have been devastating.
On April 9, a 6.1-magnitude quake rocked the south, with an epicentre around 100 kilometres (60 miles) from Bushehr.
However, a Rosatom spokesman at the time said "they did not even feel the tremors".
Western concerns also include Iranian engineers' ability to run a power plant constructed of components from three different sources -- German, Russian and domestic.
Russia's Kommersant daily reported on September 11 that Moscow was ready to sign an accord with Tehran to build a second reactor at the Bushehr power plant.
Iran has said it wants to produce 20,000 megawatts of electricity from nuclear power, which would necessitate building 20 1,000-megawatt reactors.
Reports of cooperation between Israel, Gulf States against Iran’s nuclear program
Given the way that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s United Nations speech is being portrayed,
you’d think that Israel is the only Middle Eastern country that is
seriously concerned about Iran’s nuclear program. Seriously, New York Times?
(Adds background, context)
http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/05/11/russia-syria-medvedev-idUSLDE64A14S20100511
May 11 (Reuters) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Tuesday that he hoped cooperation with Syria in the oil, gas and atomic energy sectors will be increased.
"Cooperation on atomic energy (with Syria) could get a second wind," Medvedev said at a press conference with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus.
Medvedev gave no further details on what nuclear cooperation had been discussed.
Russian news agencies quoted Assad as saying that he had discussed with Medvedev the possibility of building power plants, including nuclear ones, in Syria.
Russia says all nations have the right to peaceful nuclear power programmes and is due this year to start up an atomic power station a Russian state company has built in Iran.
When speaking about Iran's nuclear programme, Medvedev called for "constructive cooperation" with the international community on Iran's part.
The United States and some European countries believe Iran's nuclear programme is a front for an effort to develop atomic weapons. Iran denies it is seeking to build a nuclear weapon.
(Reporting by Denis Dyomkin, writing by Guy Faulconbridge, editing by Steve Gutterman)
The Islamic republic's atomic agency chief Ali Akbar Salehi confirmed on Sunday that Russia would hand over the 1,000-megawatt plant Monday.
He also said he expected work to start soon on a second plant upon completion of talks with Moscow, saying: "Negotiations are continuing and are well-advanced."
"Work will start soon," he added, without saying when.
Construction of the Bushehr facility began in the 1970s with the help of German company Siemens, which quit the project after the 1979 Islamic revolution over concerns about nuclear proliferation.
Work was also hampered by the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war, before Russia agreed in 1994 to take up the construction baton of the plant due originally for completion in 1999.
Moscow also agreed to provide its fuel for 10 years, with the supply deal committing Tehran to returning the spent fuel, amid Western concerns over its controversial uranium enrichment programme.
Bushehr was finally finished more than a decade late and inaugurated in 2010, but it did not come into service until 2011 because of technical problems.
Some Iranian officials accused Russia of foot-dragging under pressure from the United States, which had sought in vain to prevent the project from reaching fruition.
Tehran's atomic ambitions have been at the heart of its troubled relations with world powers for years.
Israel and the West suspect that Iran's declared peaceful programme of uranium enrichment masks a covert nuclear weapons drive, a charge vehemently denied in Tehran.
Construction of the Bushehr facility, located east across Gulf waters from southern Kuwait, has sparked concern among Gulf Arab states, but both Iran and Russia say it is subject to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards.
Salehi will join Russian officials at the plant for Monday's official handover ceremony.
The official IRNA news agency quoted him as saying on Sunday that "for another two years it will be under Russian guarantee and a number of Russian experts will remain in place to give advice and technical assistance".
Bushehr, under the control of the UN watchdog the IAEA, was finished by Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom.
Foreign experts say Tehran attaches great importance to Monday's handover, as it illustrates its self-sufficiency in harnessing civilian nuclear power, no longer dependent on outside help.
But neighbouring nations and the West have concerns about Bushehr, given its location in an earthquake-prone zone on the Gulf, especially since Japan's Fukushima disaster of 2011.
As the crow flies, the plant is far closer to Iran's neighbours than it is to its own capital, one foreign diplomat pointed out, adding: "The prevailing winds go towards Dubai, and marine currents towards Kuwait."
Iran sits astride several major fault lines and is prone to frequent earthquakes, some of which have been devastating.
On April 9, a 6.1-magnitude quake rocked the south, with an epicentre around 100 kilometres (60 miles) from Bushehr.
However, a Rosatom spokesman at the time said "they did not even feel the tremors".
Western concerns also include Iranian engineers' ability to run a power plant constructed of components from three different sources -- German, Russian and domestic.
Russia's Kommersant daily reported on September 11 that Moscow was ready to sign an accord with Tehran to build a second reactor at the Bushehr power plant.
Iran has said it wants to produce 20,000 megawatts of electricity from nuclear power, which would necessitate building 20 1,000-megawatt reactors.
Israel Not Alone in Wanting to Stop Iran
Reports of cooperation between Israel, Gulf States against Iran’s nuclear program
(Twitter)
But Mr. Netanyahu has hinted so often of taking military action to keep Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon that he seems eager for a fight. He did it again at the United Nations on Tuesday, warning that Israel reserved the right to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities if it deemed that Iran was close to producing nuclear weapons. “Against such a threat, Israel will have no choice but to defend itself,” he said.The next lines of that UN speech, by the way, were these:
“Yet, in standing alone, Israel will know that we will be defending many, many others. The dangers of a nuclear-armed Iran and the emergence of other threats in our region have led many of our Arab neighbors to recognize, finally recognize, that Israel is not their enemy. And this affords us the opportunity to overcome the historic animosities and build new relationships, new friendships, new hopes.”So, as it’s often been noted and even more often ignored, Arab countries–some of them sworn enemies of Israel–are very nervous about Iran’s nuclear program. Reportedly so nervous, that they are putting their decades-old objection to Israel’s existence on ice to talk about a military alliance to stop Iran, should it come to it.
According to the report, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been supervising a series of “intensive meetings” with representatives of these other countries. One “high ranking official” even came on a secret visit to Israel, the report said. …Or as the adage goes: The enemy of my enemy is a friend I have to pretend I’m not friends with.
The Gulf States involved in the new talks have no diplomatic ties with Jerusalem, the report noted. What they share with Israel, it said, is the concern that President Hasan Rouhani’s new diplomatic outreach will fool the US and lead to a US-Iran diplomatic agreement which provides for “less than the dismantling of the Iranian nuclear program.
UPDATE 1-Russia says eyes atomic energy cooperation with Syria
(Adds background, context)
http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/05/11/russia-syria-medvedev-idUSLDE64A14S20100511
May 11 (Reuters) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Tuesday that he hoped cooperation with Syria in the oil, gas and atomic energy sectors will be increased.
"Cooperation on atomic energy (with Syria) could get a second wind," Medvedev said at a press conference with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus.
Medvedev gave no further details on what nuclear cooperation had been discussed.
Russian news agencies quoted Assad as saying that he had discussed with Medvedev the possibility of building power plants, including nuclear ones, in Syria.
Russia says all nations have the right to peaceful nuclear power programmes and is due this year to start up an atomic power station a Russian state company has built in Iran.
When speaking about Iran's nuclear programme, Medvedev called for "constructive cooperation" with the international community on Iran's part.
The United States and some European countries believe Iran's nuclear programme is a front for an effort to develop atomic weapons. Iran denies it is seeking to build a nuclear weapon.
(Reporting by Denis Dyomkin, writing by Guy Faulconbridge, editing by Steve Gutterman)
Editorial
Netanyahu Pushes Back on Iran
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/02/opinion/netanyahu-pushes-back-on-iran.html?_r=0
Published: October 1, 2013 245 Comments
During an aggressive speech at the United Nations on Tuesday,
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel used sarcasm and combative
words to portray Iran’s new president, Hassan Rouhani, as a
smooth-talking charlatan, one who is determined to continue building a
nuclear weapons arsenal.
Related
-
Israeli Leader Excoriates New President of Iran (October 2, 2013)
Connect With Us on Twitter
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editor, Andrew Rosenthal, follow @andyrNYT.
Readers’ Comments
Readers shared their thoughts on this article.
Mr. Netanyahu called Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the previous Iranian
president, “a wolf in wolf’s clothing” and Mr. Rouhani “a wolf in
sheep’s clothing.”
Mr. Netanyahu has legitimate reasons to be wary of any Iranian
overtures, as do the United States and the four other major powers
involved in negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program. But it could be
disastrous if Mr. Netanyahu and his supporters in Congress were so
blinded by distrust of Iran that they exaggerate the threat, block
President Obama from taking advantage of new diplomatic openings and
sabotage the best chance to establish a new relationship since the 1979
Iranian revolution sent American-Iranian relations into the deep freeze.
Mr. Rouhani and the Iranian foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, have
insisted repeatedly that Iran wants only to develop nuclear energy and
that obtaining a nuclear weapon would harm the country’s security.
Even so, Iran hid its nuclear program from United Nations inspectors for
nearly 20 years, and the country is enriching uranium to a level that
would make it possible to produce bomb-grade nuclear material more
quickly. It has also pursued other activities, like developing
high-voltage detonators and building missiles that experts believe could
only have nuclear weapons-related uses.
These facts make it hard not to view the upcoming American-brokered
negotiations skeptically. But Mr. Netanyahu has hinted so often of
taking military action to keep Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon that
he seems eager for a fight. He did it again at the United Nations
on Tuesday, warning that Israel reserved the right to strike Iran’s
nuclear facilities if it deemed that Iran was close to producing nuclear
weapons. “Against such a threat, Israel will have no choice but to
defend itself,” he said.
The Iranians were so angered by what they called Mr. Netanyahu’s
“inflammatory” speech that they issued a rebuttal and spoke of the need
to “sustain the current positive atmosphere” so that diplomacy could be
successful.
Similarly, they were not happy that Mr. Obama, meeting Mr. Netanyahu at
the White House on Monday, took a harsher tone toward Iran than he did
when he spoke by phone with Mr. Rouhani last week.
Both Mr. Obama and Mr. Rouhani have hard-line domestic audiences and
allies that they will need to consider and cajole as they undertake this
effort to resolve the nuclear dispute and develop a new relationship.
For Mr. Obama, that means working closely with Israel and helping Mr.
Netanyahu see that sabotaging diplomacy, especially before Iran is
tested, only makes having to use force more likely. That would be the
worst result of all.
September 26, 2013 12:14
ARMZ to close deal to consolidate 100% of Uranium One Oct 18
MOSCOW. Sept 26 (Interfax) - http://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?id=446909
Atomredmetzoloto (ARMZ), the
Russian uranium mining holding, will close a deal to consolidate 100% of
the shares in Canada's Uranium One on October 18.
Uranium One said in a statement that it had obtained all the necessary regulatory approvals to close the deal.
The deal was previously expected to close at the end of the second
quarter, but Uranium One said in June that it expected it to close in
the third quarter.
ARMZ currently owns 51.4% of Uranium One. Under the terms of an
agreement signed in January 2013, ARMZ will acquire all common shares in
Uranium One not currently owned by the company and its affiliates at a
price of CAD2.86 per share. ARMZ will spend a total of about CAD1.3
billion ($1.32 billion) on the deal.
Uranium One will de-list from the Toronto and Johannesburg stock exchanges following closure.
In addition, all corporate procedures to create Uranium One Holding B.V. should be wrapped up by the autumn of 2014.
Rosatom, the state nuclear corporation which controls ARMZ, said at
the end of May that foreign uranium projects controlled by Uranium One
would be unbundled from ARMZ. Uranium One's assets will be transferred
from ARMZ to the Netherlands-based Effective Energy N.V., which will be
renamed Uranium One Holding. This holding company will be controlled by
Atomenergoprom, which manages Rosatom's civilian assets.
Uranium One Holding will also get 100% control of Mantra Resources,
which is developing the Mkuju River uranium deposit in Tanzania. Uranium
One acquired 14% of Mantra from ARMZ in March 2012 and has an option to
buy out the remainder until June 2013.
ARMZ will also expand the scope of its operations in Russia beyond uranium mining to also develop gold, zinc and lead deposits.
In Kazakhstan, Uranium One owns 70% of the Betpak Dala joint
venture, which owns the Akdala Mine and the South Inkai Mine; 50% of the
Karatau joint venture, 30% of the Kyzylkum joint venture (Kharasan
project), 50% of the Akbastau joint venture and 49.67% of the Zarechnoye
joint venture, which owns the Zarechnoye Mine and the South Zarechnoye
Project. In the United States, the company owns 100% of the Willow Creek
Project, and has a number of development projects in Wyoming. In
Australia, Uranium One owns 51% of the Honeymoon Uranium Project. It is
also the operator of Mantra Resources' Mkuju River project in Tanzania.
In Russia, ARMZ controls Priargun Mining and Chemicals Association,
which produced about 63% of Russia's uranium in 2011; CJSC Dalur and
OJSC Khiagda, where mining is done by drillhole in situ leaching. ARMZ
is also developing deposits in the Southern zone of the Elkon uranium
district in Yakutia, which calls for the construction of the Elkon
mining and metallurgical complex and a number of other projects.
In November 2012, ARMZ bought 99.5% of First Ore Mining Company for
$30 million. This company holds the rights to the Pavlovskoye lead and
zinc field on Novaya Zemlya, one of the world's five largest.
Pr of
(Our editorial staff can be reached at eng.editors@interfax.ru)
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