By: Joe Eggleston, Associate

The Islamic Republic of Iran has maintained that it never sought a nuclear bomb and now says it never will.[1] For years, the world has almost uniformly rejected that claim as a lie. In May of 2011, President Obama authorized further sanctions on Iran[2] for enriching uranium to nearly twenty percent purity.[3] Most nuclear reactors used to produce electricity run on four percent uranium.[4] Much of the world has interpreted Iran’s ambitions to enrich twenty percent uranium as the penultimate step to producing ninety percent uranium—weapons grade uranium.[5]

The U.S. has implemented regulations including banning investment in Iran, limiting imports and exports,[6] and limiting loans to certain individuals and companies involved with Iran.[7] These regulations in conjunction with other UN member countries’ sanctions have been effectively shrinking Iran’s economy.[8] Oil exports have dropped forty percent and oil revenue fell twenty-seven percent.[9]

Iran responded this September, announcing it has reduced its twenty percent uranium stockpile from 240 kg to 140 kg (250 kg is required for a nuclear bomb) and requesting that the U.S. and other countries lift the sanctions.[10] If Iran is telling the truth about their lack of nuclear bomb ambitions,[11] the international community should find a way to support their nuclear energy plan.

Iran is the world’s seventh largest emitter of CO₂,[12] and the country faces an increasing electricity demand.[13] Iran emits over five million tons of CO₂ a year from coal electricity generation alone.[14] Nuclear energy, however, does not emit CO₂ or other greenhouse gases.[15] If Iran can obtain a reliable source of enriched uranium, Iran has plans that will reduce its CO₂ emissions by 9 million tons—the equivalent of taking 1.7 million cars off the road.[16]

Iran began enriching uranium because of a long history of unreliable access to enriched uranium fuel. The U.S. supplied Iran with its first nuclear reactor called the Tehran Research Reactor (TRR) in 1967 along with a small amount of ninety percent enriched uranium (weapons grade).[17] Iran quickly spent that uranium, and for two decades sought uranium from the French and other countries to supply the TRR.[18] It was not until 1988 that Argentina converted the TRR to run on twenty percent uranium and gave Iran approximately a twenty-year supply of uranium.[19] Then in February 2012, for the first time, Iran started using indigenously-produced twenty percent uranium in the TRR.[20]

Iran now has enough twenty percent uranium to operate the TRR for 7.5-15 years.[21] If the international community could agree to allow Iran to maintain a reserve of enough twenty percent uranium for the TRR, it could save the world 30,000 tons of CO₂ a year.[22] Later this year, Iran plans to begin operating a 915 MW nuclear reactor at Bushehr, with construction planned for a second reactor called Bushehr 2.[23] There are also plans for a 360 MW reactor at Darkhowin.[24] These four nuclear reactors could end Iran’s consumption of coal electricity and reduce Iran’s CO₂ emissions by over nine million tons.[25] If the U.S. and the international community demand Iran stop enriching uranium, it could jeopardize Iran’s reliable supply of enriched uranium and prevent much needed reduction in global CO₂ levels. To achieve this reduction, the U.S. and international community should strongly consider enforcing a maximum twenty percent uranium stockpile and use international monitors at nuclear facilities with the new Iranian government, instead of scrapping the enrichment altogether.