Nuclear Regulatory Commission March 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) received a license application by letter dated March 30, 2017, from Holtec International (Holtec). By this application, Holtec is requesting authorization to construct and operate a HI-STORE consolidated interim storage facility (CISF) for spent nuclear fuel at a site in Lea County, New Mexico (the proposed action). Holtec intends to initially store 500 canisters or 8680 metric tons of uranium in the CISF and eventually store up to 10,000 canisters in the CISF. The NRC staff will prepare an EIS to document the potential environmental impacts from the proposed action. As part of the EIS development process, the NRC is seeking comments on the scope of its environmental review.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering issuance of an amendment and exemption to Combined License (COL) Nos. NPF-91 and NPF-92, issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc. (SNC) 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 (together, ``the licensee''), for construction and operation of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant (VEGP), Units 3 and 4, located in Burke County, Georgia. The requested amendments include changes to the Updated Final Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR) in the form of departures from the incorporated plant-specific Design Control Document (DCD) Tier 2* and Tier 2 information and related changes to the VEGP, Units 3 and 4, COL Appendix C (and corresponding plant-specific DCD Tier 1) information.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued an exemption to allow a departure from the certification information of Tier 1 of the generic design control document (DCD) and has issued License Amendment Nos. 111 and 110 to Combined License (COL) Nos. 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.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is granting an exemption to allow a departure from elements of the certification information of Tier 1 of the generic AP1000 design control document (DCD) and is issuing License Amendment Nos. 114 and 113 to Combined Licenses (COL), NPF-91 and NPF-92, respectively. The COLs were issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, 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 (collectively referred to as 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. The exemption revises the plant-specific Tier 1 information and corresponding changes to COL Appendix C, and the amendment changes the associated plant-specific DCD Tier 2 material incorporated into the VEGP Updated Final Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR), to update Reactor Coolant System (RCS) requirements for reactor vessel head vent (RVHV) mass flow rate for the VEGP Units 3 and 4.

Pursuant to Section 189a. (2) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is publishing this regular biweekly notice. The Act requires the Commission to publish notice of any amendments issued, or proposed to be issued, and grants the Commission the authority to issue and make immediately effective any amendment to an operating license or combined license, as applicable, upon a determination by the Commission that such amendment involves no significant hazards consideration, notwithstanding the pendency before the Commission of a request for a hearing from any person. This biweekly notice includes all notices of amendments issued, or proposed to be issued, from February 27, 2018, to March 12, 2018. The last biweekly notice was published on March 13, 2018.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an order approving indirect license transfer of control of Renewed Facility Operating License No. NPF-42 for the Wolf Creek Generating Station, Unit 1 (WCGS). The indirect transfer of control will result from the proposed merger of two indirect owners of Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation (WCNOC) and WCGSWestar Energy, Inc. and Great Plains Energy Incorporated, and subsidiaries created to effectuate the transaction. The new entity, Monarch Energy Holding, Inc., through its subsidiaries, will have a 94 percent interest in WCNOC and WCGS. The remaining 6 percent ownership interest in WCNOC and WCGS held by Kansas Electric Power Cooperative, Inc., will be unaffected. WCNOC will continue to be the operator of WCGS.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has granted the request of Exelon Generation Company, LLC to withdraw its application dated August 30, 2017, for a proposed amendment to Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-16. The proposed amendment would have revised License Condition 2.C.(5) regarding the Electric Power Research Institute's (EPRI's) technical report BWRVIP-18, ``BWR [Boiling Water Reactor] Vessel and Internals Project, BWR Core Spray Internals inspection and Flaw Evaluation Guidelines,'' revision from December 2, 1999, to December 21, 2016.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has granted the request of Southern Nuclear Operating Company to withdraw its application dated July 29, 2016, for proposed amendments to Combined License (COL) Nos. NPF-91 and NPF-92 for the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant (VEGP), Units 3 and 4, respectively. The COLs were issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.; 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 VEGP, Units 3 and 4, located in Burke County, Georgia. The amendments would have added an Interim Amendment Request (IAR) Process to License Condition 2.D.(1) of the VEGP, Units 3 and 4, COLs for changes during construction when emergent conditions are present.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) received a license application from Holtec International (Holtec), by letter dated March 30, 2017, as supplemented on April 13, October 6, December 21, and 22, 2017; and February 22, 2018. By this application, Holtec is requesting authorization to construct and operate the HI-STORE Consolidated Interim Storage (CIS) Facility, in Lea County, New Mexico. If the NRC approves the application and issues a license to Holtec, Holtec intends to store up to 8,680 metric tons uranium (MTU) of commercial spent nuclear fuel in the HI-STORM UMAX Canister Storage System for a 40-year license term.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is granting an exemption to allow a departure from elements of the certification information of Tier 1 of the generic AP1000 design control document (DCD) and is issuing License Amendment Nos. 107 and 106 to Combined Licenses (COL), NPF-91 and NPF-92, respectively. The COLs were issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, 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 (collectively referred to as 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. The exemption revises the plant-specific Tier 1 information and corresponding changes to COL Appendix C, and the amendment changes the associated plant-specific DCD Tier 2 material incorporated into the VEGP Updated Final Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR), to address mitigation of fire protection system flooding of the Auxiliary Building identified following completion of the pipe rupture hazards analysis for the VEGP Units 3 and 4.

Pursuant to Section 189a.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is publishing this regular biweekly notice. The Act requires the Commission to publish notice of any amendments issued, or proposed to be issued, and grants the Commission the authority to issue and make immediately effective any amendment to an operating license or combined license, as applicable, upon a determination by the Commission that such amendment involves no significant hazards consideration, notwithstanding the pendency before the Commission of a request for a hearing from any person. This biweekly notice includes all notices of amendments issued, or proposed to be issued, from February 13 to February 26, 2018. The last biweekly notice was published on February 27, 2018.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is providing public notice of the termination of Special Nuclear Materials (SNM) License No. SNM-2018. The NRC has terminated the license held by Rapiscan Laboratories, Inc. to possess and use SNM for research, development, and evaluation of Non-Intrusive Inspection Systems for the Transformational and Applied Research Directorate division of the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office, of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing Revision 1 to Regulatory Guide (RG) 1.158, ``Qualification of Safety- Related Vented Lead-Acid Storage Batteries for Nuclear Power Plants.'' RG 1.158 endorses (with clarifying regulatory positions) the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Standard (Std.) 535- 2013, ``IEEE Standard for Qualification of Class 1E Vented Lead Acid Storage Batteries for Nuclear Power Generating Stations.'' IEEE 535- 2013 contains procedures for qualifying batteries with duty cycles of less than 8 hours and also for batteries with duty cycles longer than 8 hours.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has received an application from Rio Algom, LLC, Ambrosia Lake facility for amendment of Materials License SUA-1473, which authorizes the burial of contaminated waste materials resulting from previous onsite milling operations into designated onsite disposal areas. The amendment would allow the release of the Section 4, Ponds at the Ambrosia Lake facility for unconditional use and update the license accordingly.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an exemption in response to an April 9, 2017, request from FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company (FENOC), in order to use Optimized ZIRLO\TM\ fuel rod cladding at the Beaver Valley Power Station, Unit Nos. 1 and 2 (Beaver Valley).

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) received and is considering approval of two amendment requests. The amendment requests are for North Anna Power Station, Units 1 and 2, and Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 3 and 4. For each amendment request, the NRC proposes to determine that they involve no significant hazards consideration. Because each amendment request contains sensitive unclassified non-safeguards information (SUNSI), an order imposes procedures to obtain access to SUNSI for contention preparation.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is making the proposed draft test plan, ``Aluminum High Energy Arc Fault (HEAF) Particle Size Characterization Test PlanDraft Test Plan,'' available for public comment.