[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 248 (Tuesday, December 26, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Page 81550]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-32830]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-354]


PSEG Nuclear LLC and Atlantic City Electric Company (Hope Creek 
Generating Station); Order Extending the Effectiveness of the Approval 
of the Transfer of License and Conforming Amendment

I

    PSEG Nuclear LLC and the Atlantic City Electric Company (ACE) are 
the joint owners of the Hope Creek Generating Station (HCGS), located 
in Salem County, New Jersey. They hold Facility Operating License No. 
NPF-57, issued by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or 
Commission) on July 25, 1986, pursuant to Part 50 of Title 10 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR Part 50). Under this license, PSEG 
Nuclear LLC (currently owner of 95 percent of HCGS) is authorized to 
act as agent for ACE (owner of the remaining 5 percent of HCGS) and has 
exclusive responsibility and control over the physical construction, 
operation, and maintenance of the facility. It is noted that on August 
21, 2000, the majority share of the HCGS license was transferred from 
the Public Service Electric and Gas Company to PSEG Nuclear LLC. This 
license transfer had previously been approved by an Order dated 
February 16, 2000.

II

    By Order dated April 21, 2000, the Commission approved the transfer 
of the license for the HCGS, to the extent it is held by ACE, to PSEG 
Nuclear LLC. By its terms, the Order of April 21, 2000, becomes null 
and void if the license transfer is not completed by December 31, 2000, 
unless upon application and for good cause shown, such date is extended 
by the Commission.

III

    By letter dated October 10, 2000, PSEG Nuclear LLC, on behalf of 
itself and ACE, submitted a request for an extension of the 
effectiveness of the Order of April 21, 2000, such that it would remain 
effective until December 31, 2001. According to the submittal, certain 
regulatory approvals in New Jersey that are needed before ACE can 
transfer its nuclear interests, which include interests in other 
facilities in addition to HCGS, are still pending. The submittal states 
that while the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) has approved 
the transfer of the ACE interests, it has not yet issued a final order 
covering all aspects of the transaction. Additionally, an appeal of the 
BPU decision in the Public Service Electric and Gas restructuring case 
that challenges the BPU's implementation of the deregulation 
legislation in New Jersey has been filed. The submittal states that 
this situation has caused ACE to delay the closing on the transfer of 
its nuclear assets.
    The NRC staff has considered the submittal of October 10, 2000, and 
has determined that good cause has been shown to extend the 
effectiveness of the Order of April 21, 2000, as requested.

IV

    Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 161b and 161i of the Atomic 
Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 2201(b) and 2201(i), It is 
Hereby Ordered that the effectiveness of the Order of April 21, 2000, 
described herein is extended such that if the subject license transfer 
from ACE to PSEG Nuclear LLC referenced above is not consummated by 
December 31, 2001, the Order of April 21, 2000, shall become null and 
void, unless upon application and for good cause shown, such date is 
further extended.
    This Order is effective upon issuance.
    For further details with respect to this Order, see the submittal 
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 accessible 
electronically through the ADAMS Public Electronic Reading Room link at 
the NRC Web site: http://www.nrc.gov.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 19th day of December 2000.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Samuel J. Collins,
Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 00-32830 Filed 12-22-00; 8:45 am]
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