[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 64 (Monday, April 3, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17543-17544]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-8108]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-321 and 50-366]


Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc., Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear 
Plant, Units 1 and 2, Notice of Acceptance for Docketing of the 
Application, and Notice of Opportunity for a Hearing Regarding Renewal 
of License, Nos. DPR-57 and NPF-5, for an Additional Twenty-Year Period

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) is 
considering an application for the renewal of Operating Licenses Nos. 
DPR-57 and NPF-5, which authorize Southern Nuclear Operating Company, 
Inc. (SNC) to operate Units 1 and 2 of the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant 
(Hatch 1 and Hatch 2, respectively), at 2,763 megawatts thermal. The 
renewed license would authorize the applicant to operate Hatch 1 and 
Hatch 2 for an additional 20 years beyond the period specified in the 
current licenses. The current operating licenses for Hatch 1 and Hatch 
2 expire on August 6, 2014 and June 13, 2018, respectively.
    SNC submitted an application to renew the operating licenses for 
Hatch 1 and Hatch 2 on March 1, 2000. A Notice of Receipt of 
Application, ``Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc., Edwin I. Hatch 
Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2; Notice of Receipt of Application for 
Renewal of Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-57 and NPF-5, for an 
Additional Twenty-Year Period,'' was published in the Federal Register 
on March 10, 2000 (65 FR 13061).
    The Commission's staff has determined that SNC has submitted 
information in accordance with 10 CFR 54.19, 54.21, 54.22, 54.23, and 
51.53(c) that is complete and acceptable for docketing. The current 
Docket Nos. 50-321 for Operating License No. DPR-57 and 50-366 for 
Operating License No. NPF-5, will be retained. The docketing of the 
renewal application does not preclude requesting additional information 
as the review proceeds, nor does it predict whether the Commission will 
grant or deny the application.
    Before issuance of the requested license renewal, the NRC will have 
made the findings required by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended 
(the Act), and the NRC's rules and regulations. In accordance with 10 
CFR 54.29, the NRC will issue a renewed license on the basis of its 
review and findings that actions have been identified and have been or 
will be taken with respect to (1) managing the effects of aging during 
the period of extended operation on the functionality of structures and 
components that have been identified as requiring aging management 
review, and (2) time-limited aging analyses that have been identified 
as requiring review such that there is reasonable assurance that the 
activities authorized by the renewed license will continue to be 
conducted in accordance with the current licensing basis (CLB) and that 
any changes made to the plant's CLB comply with the Act and the 
Commission's regulations.
    Additionally, in accordance with 10 CFR 51.95(c), the NRC will 
prepare an environmental impact statement that is a supplement to the 
Commission's NUREG-1437, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement for 
License Renewal of Nuclear Power Plants,'' (May 1996). Pursuant to 10 
CFR 51.26, and as part of the environmental scoping process, the staff 
intends to hold a public scoping meeting. Detailed information 
regarding this meeting will be included in a future Federal Register 
notice. The Commission also intends to hold public meetings to discuss 
the license renewal process and the schedule for conducting the review. 
The Commission will provide prior notice of these meetings. As 
discussed further herein, in the event that a hearing is held, issues 
that may be litigated will be confined to those pertinent to the 
foregoing.
    By 30 days after publication date, the applicant may file a request 
for a hearing, and any person whose interest may be affected by this 
proceeding and who wishes to participate as a party in the proceeding 
must file a written request for a hearing and a petition for leave to 
intervene with respect to the license renewal in accordance with the 
provisions of 10 CFR 2.714. Interested persons should consult a current 
copy of 10 CFR 2.714, which is available at the Commission's Public 
Document Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street, NW, Washington, DC 
20037. If a request for a hearing or a petition for leave to intervene 
is filed by the above date, the Commission or an Atomic Safety and 
Licensing Board designated by the Commission or by the Chairman of the 
Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel will rule on the request(s) 
and/or petition(s), and the Secretary or the designated Atomic Safety 
and Licensing Board will issue a notice of a hearing or an appropriate 
order. In the event that no request for a hearing or a petition for 
leave to intervene is filed by the above date, the NRC may, upon 
completion of its evaluations and upon making the findings required 
under 10 CFR Parts 54 and 51, renew the license without further notice.

[[Page 17544]]

    As required by 10 CFR 2.714, a petition for leave to intervene 
shall set forth with particularity the interest of the petitioner in 
the proceeding and how that interest may be affected by the results of 
the proceeding, taking into consideration the limited scope of matters 
that may be considered pursuant to 10 CFR Parts 54 and 51. The petition 
must specifically explain the reasons why intervention should be 
permitted with particular reference to the following factors: (1) The 
nature of the petitioner's right under the Act to be made a party to 
the proceeding; (2) the nature and extent of the petitioner's property, 
financial, or other interest in the proceeding; and (3) the possible 
effect of any order that may be entered in the proceeding on the 
petitioner's interest. The petition must also identify the specific 
aspect(s) of the subject matter of the proceeding as to which 
petitioner wishes to intervene. Any person who has filed a petition for 
leave to intervene or who has been admitted as a party may amend the 
petition without requesting leave of the board up to 15 days before the 
first prehearing conference scheduled in the proceeding, but such an 
amended petition must satisfy the specificity requirements described 
above.
    Not later than 15 days before the first prehearing conference 
scheduled in the proceeding, a petitioner shall file a supplement to 
the petition to intervene that must include a list of the contentions 
that the petitioner seeks to have litigated in the hearing. Each 
contention must consist of a specific statement of the issue of law or 
fact to be raised or controverted. In addition, the petitioner shall 
provide a brief explanation of the bases of each contention and a 
concise statement of the alleged facts or the expert opinion that 
supports the contention and on which the petitioner intends to rely in 
proving the contention at the hearing. The petitioner must also provide 
references to those specific sources and documents of which the 
petitioner is aware and on which the petitioner intends to rely to 
establish those facts or expert opinion. The petitioner must provide 
sufficient information to show that a genuine dispute exists with the 
applicant on a material issue of law or fact. Contentions shall be 
limited to matters within the scope of the action under consideration. 
The contention must be one that, if proven, would entitle the 
petitioner to relief. A petitioner who fails to file such a supplement 
that satisfies these requirements with respect to at least one 
contention will not be permitted to participate as a party.
    Those permitted to intervene become parties to the proceeding, 
subject to any limitations in the order granting leave to intervene, 
and have the opportunity to participate fully in the conduct of the 
hearing, including the opportunity to present evidence and cross-
examine witnesses.
    Requests for a hearing and petitions for leave to intervene must be 
filed with the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemakings and 
Adjudications Staff, or may be delivered to the Commission's Public 
Document Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street, NW, Washington DC 
20037, by the above date. A copy of the request for a hearing and the 
petition should also be sent to the Office of the General Counsel, U.S. 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, and to Mr. 
H.L. Sumner, Vice President--Hatch Project, Southern Nuclear Operating 
Company, Inc. 40 Inverness Center Parkway, P.O. Box 1295, Birmingham, 
AL 35201-1295.
    Nontimely filings of petitions for leave to intervene, amended 
petitions, supplemental petitions, and/or requests for a hearing will 
not be entertained absent a determination by the Commission, the 
presiding officer, or the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board that the 
petition and/or request should be granted based upon a balancing of the 
factors specified in 10 CFR 2.714(a)(1) (i)-(v) and 2.714(d).
    Detailed information about the license renewal process can be found 
under the nuclear reactors' icon of the NRC's Web page http://www.nrc.gov>.
    A copy of the application to renew the Hatch 1 and Hatch 2 licenses 
is available for public inspection at the Commission's Public Document 
Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037, and 
on the NRC's Web page http://www.nrc.gov>. In addition, the Appling 
County Library, 242 East Parker Street, Baxley, Georgia 31513, has 
agreed to make a copy of the application and related information 
available to the public.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of March 2000.
    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Pao-Tsin Kuo,
Acting Chief, License Renewal and Standardization Branch, Division of 
Regulatory Improvement Programs, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 00-8108 Filed 3-31-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P