[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 228 (Monday, November 27, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70740-70741]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-30101]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-277 and 50-278]


PECO Energy Company and PSEG Nuclear LLC et al.; Notice of 
Consideration of Approval of Transfer of Facility Operating Licenses 
and Conforming Amendments, and Opportunity for a Hearing

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) is 
considering the issuance of an order under 10 CFR 50.80 approving the 
transfer of Facility Operating License No. DPR-44 for the Peach Bottom 
Atomic Power Station (PBAPS), Unit 2, and Facility Operating License 
No. DPR-56 for PBAPS, Unit 3, to the extent currently held by the 
Delmarva Power & Light Company (DP&L) and the Atlantic City Electric 
Company (ACE) in connection with each of their 7.51 percent undivided 
ownership interests in each of the two Peach Bottom units. The transfer 
would be to PSEG Nuclear LLC, and to either the PECO Energy Company 
(PECO) as a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation, or to Exelon Generation 
Company, LLC (EGC) as an indirect subsidiary of Exelon Corporation, 
depending on the timing of the transfers. The Commission is also 
considering amending the licenses for administrative purposes to 
reflect the proposed transfer.
    The Commission previously issued an order on April 21, 2000, 
approving the transfer of half of the ownership interests of DP&L and 
ACE in PBAPS Units 2 and 3 to PSEG Nuclear LLC and the other half to 
PECO. One of the bases of that order was that the interests of DP&L and 
ACE would be transferred collectively and simultaneously. On the other 
hand, it was not necessarily assumed that PECO would be a subsidiary of 
Exelon Corporation. PECO became a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation on 
October 20, 2000.
    According to an application for approval dated October 10, 2000, 
filed by PECO on behalf of itself, PSEG Nuclear LLC, DP&L, and ACE, the 
transfer of each of the half-interests of DP&L and ACE may not occur at 
the same time; the transfer of the ACE interests may be delayed until 
after the transfer of the DP&L interests. If the DP&L and ACE interests 
are not transferred simultaneously and collectively, decommissioning 
funding arrangements would be changed from what had been previously 
approved by the April 21, 2000 order. In particular, a contractual 
guarantee by ACE would be utilized to provide, in part, decommissioning 
funding assurance with respect to any DP&L transfer occurring first. 
Furthermore, those DP&L and ACE interests originally proposed and 
approved to be transferred to PECO are now explicitly being proposed to 
be transferred directly from DP&L and ACE, or ultimately and indirectly 
through PECO, to EGC. Although the transfer of PECO's current 42.49 
percent ownership interest in PBAPS, Units 2 and 3, to EGC has been 
approved by an order dated August 3, 2000, approving certain license 
transfers, the transfer of half of the current DP&L and ACE ownership 
interests to EGC has not been expressly approved by the NRC. By the 
October 10, 2000, application filed, PECO is seeking all NRC approvals 
that would be necessary to permit the implementation of any of the 
foregoing scenarios. PECO is also requesting that the effectiveness of 
the April 21, 2000 NRC order be extended for one additional year.
    PECO is the licensed operator of PBAPS, and would continue to be 
responsible for the operation, maintenance, and eventual 
decommissioning of PBAPS until all PECO interests in PBAPS are 
transferred to EGC. No physical changes to PBAPS or operational changes 
are being proposed in the application.
    The proposed conforming amendments would remove references in the 
licenses to ACE and DP&L as appropriate to the timing of the requisite 
license transfers, and reflect the appropriate transferees.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.80, no license, or any right thereunder, 
shall be transferred, directly or indirectly, through transfer of 
control of the license, unless the Commission shall

[[Page 70741]]

give its consent in writing. The Commission will approve an application 
for the transfer of a license, if the Commission determines that the 
proposed transferee is qualified to hold the license, and that the 
transfer is otherwise consistent with applicable provisions of law, 
regulations, and orders issued by the Commission pursuant thereto.
    Before issuance of the proposed conforming license amendments, the 
Commission will have made findings required by the Atomic Energy Act of 
1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's regulations.
    As provided in 10 CFR 2.1315, unless otherwise determined by the 
Commission with regard to a specific application, the Commission has 
determined that any amendment to the license of a utilization facility 
which does no more than conform the license to reflect the transfer 
action involves no significant hazards consideration. No contrary 
determination has been made with respect to this specific license 
amendment application. In light of the generic determination reflected 
in 10 CFR 2.1315, no public comments with respect to significant 
hazards considerations are being solicited, notwithstanding the general 
comment procedures contained in 10 CFR 50.91.
    The filing of requests for hearing and petitions for leave to 
intervene, and written comments with regard to the license transfer 
application, are discussed below.
    By December 18, 2000, any person whose interest may be affected by 
the Commission's action on the application may request a hearing, and, 
if not the applicants, may petition for leave to intervene in a hearing 
proceeding on the Commission's action. Requests for a hearing and 
petitions for leave to intervene should be filed in accordance with the 
Commission's rules of practice set forth in Subpart M, ``Public 
Notification, Availability of Documents and Records, Hearing Requests 
and Procedures for Hearings on License Transfer Applications,'' of 10 
CFR Part 2. In particular, such requests and petitions must comply with 
the requirements set forth in 10 CFR 2.1306, and should address the 
considerations contained in 10 CFR 2.1308(a). Untimely requests and 
petitions may be denied, as provided in 10 CFR 2.1308(b), unless good 
cause for failure to file on time is established. In addition, an 
untimely request or petition should address the factors that the 
Commission will also consider, in reviewing untimely requests or 
petitions, set forth in 10 CFR 2.1308(b)(1)-(2).
    Requests for a hearing and petitions for leave to intervene should 
be served upon counsel for PECO Energy Company, Paul J. Zaffuts, 
Esquire, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP, 1800 M Street, NW, Washington, 
DC 20036-5869 (tel: 202-467-7537 and e-mail: [email protected]); 
counsel for PSEG Nuclear LLC, David A. Repka, Esquire, Winston & 
Strawn, 1400 L Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005-3502 (tel: 202-371-5726 
and e-mail: [email protected]); counsel for Atlantic City Electric 
Company and Delmarva Power & Light Company, John H. O'Neill, Jr., 
Esquire, and Matias F. Travieso-Diaz, Esquire, Shaw Pittman, 2300 N. 
Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037-1128 (tel: 202-663-8148 e-mail: 
john.o'[email protected]); the General Counsel, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555 (e-mail address for filings 
regarding license transfer cases only: [email protected]); and the 
Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemakings and Adjudications 
Staff, in accordance with 10 CFR 2.1313.
    The Commission will issue a notice or order granting or denying a 
hearing request or intervention petition, designating the issues for 
any hearing that will be held and designating the Presiding Officer. A 
notice granting a hearing will be published in the Federal Register and 
served on the parties to the hearing.
    As an alternative to requests for hearing and petitions to 
intervene, by December 27, 2000, persons may submit written comments 
regarding the license transfer application, as provided for in 10 CFR 
2.1305. The Commission will consider and, if appropriate, respond to 
these comments, but such comments will not otherwise constitute part of 
the decisional record. Comments should be submitted to the Secretary, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, 
Attention: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, and should cite the 
publication date and page number of this Federal Register notice.
    For further details with respect to this action, see the 
application dated October 10, 2000, which may be examined, and/or 
copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room, located at One 
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, MD, 
and is accessible electronically through the ADAMS Public Electronic 
Reading Room link at the NRC Web site: http://www.nrc.gov.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 20th day of November 2000.
    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John P. Boska,
Project Manager, Section 2, Project Directorate I, Division of 
Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 00-30101 Filed 11-24-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P