Iran to increase Natanz facility’s capacity

Sunday’s incident did not stop the uranium enrichment process at Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility, the country’s Vice President Ali Akbar Salehi, who heads the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said on Monday, pointing to plans to increase the facility’s capacity.

"Yesterday’s incident at the Shahid Ahmadi Roshan enrichment facility did not stop the enrichment process, the site switched to emergency power supply," he said, as cited by the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting Corporation (IRIB).

According to Salehi, the Natanz facility "will continue to operate and its capacity will be increased by 50%" He added that "the authorities will replace the damaged centrifuges with more powerful ones in a few days."

Tehran said on Sunday that the Natanz nuclear facility had been hit by a power failure. Ali Akbar Salehi described the incident as an act of nuclear terrorism. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, in turn, pointed to Israel’s involvement in the Natanz incident. The New York Times wrote that "American and Israeli intelligence officials said there had been an Israeli role."