IRAN - Apr 9 - Iran Has 'Industrial Scale' Nuclear Capacity.

President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad says that Iran had reached what he called "industrial scale" in its production of nuclear fuel. But a lack of detail in his announcement left analysts trying to disentangle atomic substance from political rhetoric. With the latest UN Security Council resolution giving Iran until late May to suspend almost all its nuclear programme, on Apr 9 announcement appeared to be a clear snub and a restatement of Tehran's determination to continue with its nuclear programme. Ahmadi-Nejad was speaking at a ceremony at the Natanz plant in central Iran, which has been producing enriched uranium in a pilot scheme of about 300 centrifuges, the devices for enriching uranium. The White House said it was "very concerned" at the Iranian announcement and called on Tehran to comply with its obligations to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and UN Security Council. "Iran continues to defy the international community and further isolate itself by expanding its nuclear programme, rather than suspending uranium enrichment", said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the White House National Security Council. "Iran's decision to limit even further its co-operation with the IAEA is unacceptable". A top US intelligence official said the US intelligence community had not changed its estimate that Iran would be incapable of building a nuclear bomb until early to mid-next decade. He said speculation that Iran might be able to produce enough weapons-grade uranium for a bomb by 2009 assumed that it would meet every development milestone without a problem, which he said was almost impossible. The official suggested that Ahmadi-Nejad was exaggerating Iran's nuclear ability, saying Tehran was playing a game of "Three-card Monte". He said it was more important to look at whether the centrifuges were working rather than their number. The apparently slow progress of Iran's programme - monitored in reports from the IAEA - has encouraged speculation that the centrifuges had been overheating and may explain why the president avoided specific detail. Iran has long expressed an intention to move towards operating 3,000 centrifuges after announcing last year it had mastered the basic technology of the fuel cycle. Muhammad ElBaradei, the UN's chief nuclear inspector, told the FT in February that Iran could be six months to a year away from operating an industrial size cascade of 3,000 centrifuges. Like Ahmadi-Nejad, Gholam Reza Aghazadeh, vice-president and head of the country's Atomic Energy Agency, refused to confirm that Iran was operating 3,000 centrifuges. But Ali Larijani, Iran's top security official, told the FT the number had been reached. Asked in Natanz if the programme had faltered, Larijani replied: Then why are they [the west] worried?" Events at the plant were part of Iran's "National Day of Nuclear Energy" as the country's leaders attempt to cement consensus behind the atomic programme. School bells rang nationwide and students formed a human chain at Iran's AEA in Tehran, burning US and British flags. Larijani was quoted earlier in the day by Mehr news agency as saying Iran remained open to a compromise that would limit its programme. "Today, with the nuclear fuel cycle complete, we are ready to begin real negotiations with the aim of reaching an understanding", he said. Ahmadi-Nejad was speaking in Natanz before an audience of officials, theologians and journalists brought from Tehran for the occasion. Visitors found the plant surrounded with earth ramparts and ringed with anti-aircraft guns and at least one mobile missile launcher as speculation over military strikes on its nuclear facilities continues.