Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.; Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 3 and 4; Tier 1 and Tier 2* Editorial and Consistency Changes, 39474-39475 [2018-16995]

Download as PDF 39474 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 154 / Thursday, August 9, 2018 / Notices The Commission has determined that these amendments satisfy the criteria for categorical exclusion in accordance with 10 CFR 51.22. Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared for these amendments. IV. Conclusion Using the reasons set forth in the combined safety evaluation, the staff granted the exemptions and issued the amendments that the licensee requested on August 31, 2017, and supplemented by letters dated March 23, and May 18, 2018 (ADAMS Accession No. ML17243A444, ML18082B369 and ML18138A398, respectively). The exemption and amendment were issued to the licensee on June 28, 2018, as part of a combined package (ADAMS Accession No. ML18152B267). Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of August 2018. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Jennifer L. Dixon-Herrity, Chief, Licensing Branch 4, Division of Licensing, Siting, and Environmental Analysis, Office of New Reactors. [FR Doc. 2018–16996 Filed 8–8–18; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590–01–P NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [Docket Nos. 52–025 and 52–026; NRC– 2008–0252] Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.; Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 3 and 4; Tier 1 and Tier 2* Editorial and Consistency Changes Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Exemption and combined license amendment; issuance. AGENCY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is granting an exemption to allow a departure from the certification information of Tier 1 of the generic AP1000 design control document (DCD) and is issuing License Amendment Nos. 125 and 124 to Combined Licenses (COL), NPF–91 and NPF–92, respectively. The COLs were issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc., and Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, MEAG Power SPVM, LLC, MEAG Power SPVJ, LLC, MEAG Power SPVP, LLC, and the City of Dalton, Georgia (the licensee); for construction and operation of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant (VEGP) Units 3 and 4, located in Burke County, Georgia. sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:11 Aug 08, 2018 Jkt 244001 The granting of the exemption allows the changes to Tier 1 information asked for in the amendment. Because the acceptability of the exemption was determined in part by the acceptability of the amendment, the exemption and amendment are being issued concurrently. DATES: The exemption and amendment were issued on May 31, 2018. ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC–2008–0252 when contacting the NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You may obtain publicly-available information related to this document using any of the following methods: • Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC–2008–0252. Address questions about NRC dockets to Jennifer Borges; 301–287–9127; email: Jennifer.Borges@nrc.gov. For technical questions, contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document. • NRC’s Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS): You may obtain publiclyavailable documents online in the ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/ adams.html. To begin the search, select ‘‘Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.’’ For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC’s Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1–800–397–4209, 301– 415–4737, or by email to pdr.resource@ nrc.gov. The ADAMS accession number for each document referenced (if it is available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that it is mentioned in this document. The request for the amendment and exemption was submitted by letters dated November 30, 2017, and March 16, 2018, and are available in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML17334B211 and ML18075A438. • NRC’s PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public documents at the NRC’s PDR, Room O1–F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter Hearn, Office of New Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555–0001; telephone: 301–415–1189; email: Peter.Hearn@ nrc.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Introduction The NRC is granting an exemption from paragraph B of section III, ‘‘Scope and Contents,’’ of appendix D, ‘‘Design Certification Rule for the AP1000,’’ to part 52 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), and issuing PO 00000 Frm 00073 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 License Amendment Nos. 125 and 124 to COL Nos. NPF–91 and NPF–92, respectively, to the licensee. The exemption is required by paragraph A.4 of section VIII, ‘‘Processes for Changes and Departures,’’ appendix D, to 10 CFR part 52 to allow the licensee to depart from Tier 1 information. With the requested amendment, the licensee sought proposed changes to plantspecific DCD Tier 2 and Tier 2* information and related changes to plant-specific Tier 1 information, with corresponding changes to Inspections, Tests, Analyses, and Acceptance Criteria (ITAAC) in COL Appendix C. Specifically the changes corrected various editorial and consistency issues between Tier 1 and Tier 2 in Tier 1 text, tables and figures. Part of the justification for granting the exemption was provided by the review of the amendment. Because the exemption is necessary in order to issue the requested license amendment, the NRC granted the exemption and issued the amendment concurrently, rather than in sequence. This included issuing a combined safety evaluation containing the NRC staff’s review of both the exemption request and the license amendment. The exemption met all applicable regulatory criteria set forth in 10 CFR 50.12, 10 CFR 52.7, and section VIII.A.4 of appendix D to 10 CFR part 52. The license amendment was found to be acceptable as well. The combined safety evaluation is available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML18106A638. Identical exemption documents (except for referenced unit numbers and license numbers) were issued to the licensee for VEGP Units 3 and 4 (COLs NPF–91 and NPF–92). The exemption documents for VEGP Units 3 and 4 can be found in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML18106A629 and ML18106A631, respectively. The exemption is reproduced (with the exception of abbreviated titles and additional citations) in Section II of this document. The amendment documents for COLs NPF–91 and NPF–92 are available in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML18106A632 and ML18106A635, respectively. A summary of the amendment documents is provided in Section III of this document. II. Exemption Reproduced below is the exemption document issued to VEGP Units 3 and 4. It makes reference to the combined safety evaluation that provides the reasoning for the findings made by the NRC (and listed under Item 1) in order to grant the exemption: 1. In a letter dated November 30, 2017, as supplemented by the letter E:\FR\FM\09AUN1.SGM 09AUN1 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 154 / Thursday, August 9, 2018 / Notices sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES dated March 16, 2018, the Southern Nuclear Operating Company (SNC) requested from the Commission an exemption to allow departures from Tier 1 information in the certified DCD incorporated by reference in 10 CFR part 52, appendix D, as part of license amendment request 17–042, ‘‘Tier 1 and Tier 2* Editorial and Consistency Changes.’’ For the reasons set forth in Section 3.2 of the NRC staff’s Safety Evaluation that which can be found in ADAMS under Accession No. ML18106A638), the Commission finds that: A. The exemption is authorized by law; B. the exemption presents no undue risk to public health and safety; C. the exemption is consistent with the common defense and security; D. special circumstances are present in that the application of the rule in this circumstance is not necessary to serve the underlying purpose of the rule; E. the special circumstances outweigh any decrease in safety that may result from the reduction in standardization caused by the exemption; and F. the exemption will not result in a significant decrease in the level of safety otherwise provided by the design. 2. Accordingly, the licensee is granted an exemption from the certified DCD Tier 1 information, with corresponding changes to appendix C of the Facility Combined License, as described in the licensee’s request dated November 30, 2017, as supplemented by the letter dated March 16, 2018. This exemption is related to, and necessary for, the granting of License Amendment No. 125 [for Unit 3 and No. 124 for Unit 4], which is being issued concurrently with this exemption. 3. As explained in Section 5.0 of the NRC staff’s Safety Evaluation (ADAMS Accession No. ML18106A638), this exemption meets the eligibility criteria for categorical exclusion set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9). Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment needs to be prepared in connection with the issuance of the exemption. 4. This exemption is effective as of the date of its issuance. III. License Amendment Request By letter dated November 30, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. ML17334B211), the licensee requested that the NRC amend the COLs for VEGP, Units 3 and 4, COLs NPF–91 and NPF–92. The proposed amendment is described in Section I of this document. The Commission has determined for these amendments that the application VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:11 Aug 08, 2018 Jkt 244001 complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission’s rules and regulations. The Commission has made appropriate findings as required by the Act and the Commission’s rules and regulations in 10 CFR chapter I, which are set forth in the license amendment. A notice of consideration of issuance of amendment to facility operating license or COL, as applicable, proposed no significant hazards consideration determination, and opportunity for a hearing in connection with these actions, was published in the Federal Register on March 30, 2018 (83 FR 13796). No comments were received during the 30-day comment period. The Commission has determined that these amendments satisfy the criteria for categorical exclusion in accordance with 10 CFR 51.22. Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared for these amendments. IV. Conclusion Using the reasons set forth in the combined safety evaluation, the staff granted the exemption and issued the amendment that the licensee requested on November 30, 2017. The exemption and amendment were issued on May 31, 2018, as part of a combined package to the licensee (ADAMS Accession No. ML18106A626). Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of August 2018. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Jennifer L. Dixon-Herrity, Chief, Licensing Branch 4, Division of Licensing, Siting, and Environmental Analysis Office of New Reactors. [FR Doc. 2018–16995 Filed 8–8–18; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 39475 an engineering assessment of recent NRC-sponsored mechanical testing of HBU SNF, and proposes example approaches for licensing and certification of HBU SNF in transportation and dry storage. DATES: Submit comments on the draft NUREG–2224 by September 24, 2018. Comments received after this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the NRC is able to ensure consideration only for comments received on or before this date. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods: • Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC–2018–0066. Address questions about NRC dockets to Jennifer Borges; telephone: 301–287–9127; email: Jennifer.Borges@nrc.gov. For technical questions, contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document. • Mail comments to: May Ma, Office of Administration, Mail Stop: TWFN–7– A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555– 0001. For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting comments, see ‘‘Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments’’ in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wendy Reed, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, telephone: 301– 415–7213; email: Wendy.Reed@nrc.gov; U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555–0001. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments A. Obtaining Information NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC–2018–0066] Dry Storage and Transportation of High Burnup Spent Nuclear Fuel Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Draft NUREG; request for comment. AGENCY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing for public comment a draft NUREG, NUREG–2224, ‘‘Dry Storage and Transportation of High Burnup Spent Nuclear Fuel.’’ The draft NUREG provides technical background information applicable to high burnup spent nuclear fuel (HBU SNF), provides SUMMARY: PO 00000 Frm 00074 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Please refer to Docket ID NRC–2018– 0066 when contacting the NRC about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain publiclyavailable information related to this action by any of the following methods: • Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC–2018–0066. • NRC’s Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS): You may obtain publiclyavailable documents online in the ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/ adams.html. To begin the search, select ‘‘Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.’’ For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC’s Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1–800–397–4209, 301– E:\FR\FM\09AUN1.SGM 09AUN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 154 (Thursday, August 9, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39474-39475]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-16995]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 52-025 and 52-026; NRC-2008-0252]


Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.; Vogtle Electric 
Generating Plant, Units 3 and 4; Tier 1 and Tier 2* Editorial and 
Consistency Changes

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Exemption and combined license amendment; issuance.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is granting an 
exemption to allow a departure from the certification information of 
Tier 1 of the generic AP1000 design control document (DCD) and is 
issuing License Amendment Nos. 125 and 124 to Combined Licenses (COL), 
NPF-91 and NPF-92, respectively. The COLs were issued to Southern 
Nuclear Operating Company, Inc., and Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe 
Power Corporation, MEAG Power SPVM, LLC, MEAG Power SPVJ, LLC, MEAG 
Power SPVP, LLC, and the City of Dalton, Georgia (the licensee); for 
construction and operation of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant 
(VEGP) Units 3 and 4, located in Burke County, Georgia.
    The granting of the exemption allows the changes to Tier 1 
information asked for in the amendment. Because the acceptability of 
the exemption was determined in part by the acceptability of the 
amendment, the exemption and amendment are being issued concurrently.

DATES: The exemption and amendment were issued on May 31, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2008-0252 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may obtain publicly-available information related to this document 
using any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2008-0252. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Jennifer Borges; 301-287-9127; email: 
[email protected]. For technical questions, contact the 
individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this document.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the 
ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS 
Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's Public 
Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or 
by email to [email protected]. The ADAMS accession number for each 
document referenced (if it is available in ADAMS) is provided the first 
time that it is mentioned in this document. The request for the 
amendment and exemption was submitted by letters dated November 30, 
2017, and March 16, 2018, and are available in ADAMS under Accession 
Nos. ML17334B211 and ML18075A438.
     NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public 
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter Hearn, Office of New Reactors, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; 
telephone: 301-415-1189; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

    The NRC is granting an exemption from paragraph B of section III, 
``Scope and Contents,'' of appendix D, ``Design Certification Rule for 
the AP1000,'' to part 52 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
(10 CFR), and issuing License Amendment Nos. 125 and 124 to COL Nos. 
NPF-91 and NPF-92, respectively, to the licensee. The exemption is 
required by paragraph A.4 of section VIII, ``Processes for Changes and 
Departures,'' appendix D, to 10 CFR part 52 to allow the licensee to 
depart from Tier 1 information. With the requested amendment, the 
licensee sought proposed changes to plant-specific DCD Tier 2 and Tier 
2* information and related changes to plant-specific Tier 1 
information, with corresponding changes to Inspections, Tests, 
Analyses, and Acceptance Criteria (ITAAC) in COL Appendix C. 
Specifically the changes corrected various editorial and consistency 
issues between Tier 1 and Tier 2 in Tier 1 text, tables and figures.
    Part of the justification for granting the exemption was provided 
by the review of the amendment. Because the exemption is necessary in 
order to issue the requested license amendment, the NRC granted the 
exemption and issued the amendment concurrently, rather than in 
sequence. This included issuing a combined safety evaluation containing 
the NRC staff's review of both the exemption request and the license 
amendment. The exemption met all applicable regulatory criteria set 
forth in 10 CFR 50.12, 10 CFR 52.7, and section VIII.A.4 of appendix D 
to 10 CFR part 52. The license amendment was found to be acceptable as 
well. The combined safety evaluation is available in ADAMS under 
Accession No. ML18106A638.
    Identical exemption documents (except for referenced unit numbers 
and license numbers) were issued to the licensee for VEGP Units 3 and 4 
(COLs NPF-91 and NPF-92). The exemption documents for VEGP Units 3 and 
4 can be found in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML18106A629 and 
ML18106A631, respectively. The exemption is reproduced (with the 
exception of abbreviated titles and additional citations) in Section II 
of this document. The amendment documents for COLs NPF-91 and NPF-92 
are available in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML18106A632 and 
ML18106A635, respectively. A summary of the amendment documents is 
provided in Section III of this document.

II. Exemption

    Reproduced below is the exemption document issued to VEGP Units 3 
and 4. It makes reference to the combined safety evaluation that 
provides the reasoning for the findings made by the NRC (and listed 
under Item 1) in order to grant the exemption:
    1. In a letter dated November 30, 2017, as supplemented by the 
letter

[[Page 39475]]

dated March 16, 2018, the Southern Nuclear Operating Company (SNC) 
requested from the Commission an exemption to allow departures from 
Tier 1 information in the certified DCD incorporated by reference in 10 
CFR part 52, appendix D, as part of license amendment request 17-042, 
``Tier 1 and Tier 2* Editorial and Consistency Changes.''
    For the reasons set forth in Section 3.2 of the NRC staff's Safety 
Evaluation that which can be found in ADAMS under Accession No. 
ML18106A638), the Commission finds that:
    A. The exemption is authorized by law;
    B. the exemption presents no undue risk to public health and 
safety;
    C. the exemption is consistent with the common defense and 
security;
    D. special circumstances are present in that the application of the 
rule in this circumstance is not necessary to serve the underlying 
purpose of the rule;
    E. the special circumstances outweigh any decrease in safety that 
may result from the reduction in standardization caused by the 
exemption; and
    F. the exemption will not result in a significant decrease in the 
level of safety otherwise provided by the design.
    2. Accordingly, the licensee is granted an exemption from the 
certified DCD Tier 1 information, with corresponding changes to 
appendix C of the Facility Combined License, as described in the 
licensee's request dated November 30, 2017, as supplemented by the 
letter dated March 16, 2018. This exemption is related to, and 
necessary for, the granting of License Amendment No. 125 [for Unit 3 
and No. 124 for Unit 4], which is being issued concurrently with this 
exemption.
    3. As explained in Section 5.0 of the NRC staff's Safety Evaluation 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML18106A638), this exemption meets the eligibility 
criteria for categorical exclusion set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9). 
Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact 
statement or environmental assessment needs to be prepared in 
connection with the issuance of the exemption.
    4. This exemption is effective as of the date of its issuance.

III. License Amendment Request

    By letter dated November 30, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML17334B211), the licensee requested that the NRC amend the COLs for 
VEGP, Units 3 and 4, COLs NPF-91 and NPF-92. The proposed amendment is 
described in Section I of this document.
    The Commission has determined for these amendments that the 
application complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic 
Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's rules 
and regulations. The Commission has made appropriate findings as 
required by the Act and the Commission's rules and regulations in 10 
CFR chapter I, which are set forth in the license amendment.
    A notice of consideration of issuance of amendment to facility 
operating license or COL, as applicable, proposed no significant 
hazards consideration determination, and opportunity for a hearing in 
connection with these actions, was published in the Federal Register on 
March 30, 2018 (83 FR 13796). No comments were received during the 30-
day comment period.
    The Commission has determined that these amendments satisfy the 
criteria for categorical exclusion in accordance with 10 CFR 51.22. 
Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact 
statement or environmental assessment need be prepared for these 
amendments.

IV. Conclusion

    Using the reasons set forth in the combined safety evaluation, the 
staff granted the exemption and issued the amendment that the licensee 
requested on November 30, 2017.
    The exemption and amendment were issued on May 31, 2018, as part of 
a combined package to the licensee (ADAMS Accession No. ML18106A626).

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of August 2018.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jennifer L. Dixon-Herrity,
 Chief, Licensing Branch 4, Division of Licensing, Siting, and 
Environmental Analysis Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2018-16995 Filed 8-8-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
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