Iran to produce new centrifuges

The head of Iran's Atomic Energy organization says Iran is producing a new generation of uranium centrifuges. The equipment is expected to be ready by March 2011.

Ali Akbar Salehi announced on Friday that Iran has been testing small batches of the new equipment at a pilot enrichment plant. The new generation of centrifuges are named IR3 and IR4. But Salehi says Iran is not in a hurry to enter the industrial production stage. He also added that Iran now has "over 6,000 active centrifuges".

Meanwhile, a former Iran's nuclear watchdog, said Iran would install up to 50 thousand centrifuges in the next 5 years. Western countries have long accused that Iran is seeking nuclear weapons, but Iran insists that its nuclear program is completely peaceful.

File photo shows that Iranian technicians are seen at the Isfahan  Uranium Conversion Facilities (UCF), 420 kms south of Tehran in  2005.The head of Iran's Atomic Energy organization says Iran is  producing a new generation of uranium centrifuges. The equipment  is expected to be ready by March 2011.