I Need a Site that has Facts to Support Iran's Quest for Nuclear Power

[Corey_Baker08]

I am in a debate tomorrow for advanced speech class and I am arguing on an affirmative case that says Iran should have access to nuclear technology. Some things I have learned about it so far include the economic benefits of it and how it would affect their country. I know my opponents are going to argue all about nuclear weapons and terrorist so I want to argue economics.

Thanks

[ursi]

1. like news stories?

This one from January 2008:

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran expects to have its own nuclear-generated electricity by this time next year and will not bow to Western pressure to halt uranium enrichment, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Wednesday.

Ahmadinejad told a crowd in the southern city of Bushehr that Iran was approaching the peak of its nuclear programprograme.

Iran's planned first nuclear power plant is sited close to Bushehr. The plant would begin test operations by late October, a senior official said on Wednesday, two days after Russia completed fuel deliveries to the site.

The West suspects Iran's nuclear activities are ultimately aimed at building weapons. Iran, the world's fourth-largest crude oil producer, says it only wants to generate electricity so that it can export more of its oil and gas.

more...

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSDAH02971620080130?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&rpc=22&sp=true

This one from 2006:


snip...


In an interview with USA TODAY, Ali Larijani said Iran is prepared to meet with Russian diplomats Feb. 16 about Russia's offer to provide nuclear fuel for Iran's energy program. (Related: Q&A with Ali Larijani)

The Russian offer would ease U.S. and European concerns that Iran plans to use any fuel to build nuclear weapons, which Iran denies.

more...

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-02-06-russia-offer_x.htm

[Djinn]

2. my angle would be

that they're a sovereign nation and it is not up to Americans to decide what they do or don't do with their resources.

[Ichingcarpenter]

3. There was a CIA study that is online

that said they would need other means of power in 20 years with their oil running out
also it covered their mining capabilities. The report was from the late 90s.
I won't be your research monkey tonight though.

I really can't believe you haven't prepared yourself
for a debate tomorrow in an 'advance debate class'
and ask for answers so late at night on a website chat-room.

[DCKit]

4. Good advice ^

I would also look at what kind of reactor they're building. A regular nuclear reactor's end products are nuclear waste (though that would be effective as a dirty weapon). A breeder reactor, on the other hand, is used to create both power and plutonium, a serious bomb-making material.

The supply agreements would also be a good place to look. If there are no other suppliers and Russia is only supplying enough uranium to power a reactor, then there's no uranium for building bombs. That is the kind of work Valerie Plame was doing before she was outed, but there should be some information along the same lines available for public consumption.

I have the background, but haven't bothered to look. I have come to realize that nothing resembling the truth has come out of the WH since the Clintons stole the furniture, defaced the computers and took a huge dump in the middle of the Oval Office. So when * says Iran is trying to develop new-cue-lur weapons, I assume he's talking about something imaginary.

[2hip]

5. Iran’s concern for its economy.

I researched this subject awhile back...


Iran’s exploding population is leading to increased demand for electric power of about 7%-8% annually. Currently, it’s seeing capital shortages in the electricity market.

If Iran abandons it's nuclear ambitions, it will have to replace …power generation with other means. The obvious choice is of course it's oil and gas reserves. The dilemma for the Iranians is one of opportunity cost, for by diverting the oil and gas for domestic consumption they'll be foregoing earning foreign exchange, which if we discount the recent run-up in oil prices, Iran is in desperate need of, for oil is the main export that they have to offer the world.

Further compounding the issue is the rise of domestic consumption, and with its burgeoning population Iran could expect to see the majority of its oil production diverted away from export markets and severely curtailing its foreign exchange earnings.

Another compounding issue is that Iranian national pride is tied up with the nuclear development. To succumb to US and European pressures would be hugely unpopular domestically.

http://www.gnxp.com/MT2/archives/003117.html

While I am NOT a proponent of nuclear power, my research has concistently revealed that it's cheaper than other means of energy production.

Because the fuel used in nuclear power plants exist in abundant supply, the price is very cheap, unlike for fossil fuels where the supply is finite and slowly diminishing. A typical fuel pellet cost about $7. This one fuel pellet has an equivalent energy of three barrels of oil, which cost $84, or one ton of coal, which cost $29. In 1993, the fossil fuels displaced by nuclear energy totaled: 470 million tons of coal and 96 million barrels of oil which translated to about $17 billion. By using nuclear energy at $7 per pellet, a savings of about $13 billion was generated in just one year.

http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/thyd/ne161/ncabreza/sources.html