[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 10 (Friday, January 15, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2564-2565]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-664]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 52-017; NRC-2008-0066]


Virginia Electric and Power Company D/B/A Dominion Virginia Power 
and Old Dominion Electric Cooperative; Combined License Application for 
North Anna Unit 3; Exemption

1.0 Background

    Virginia Electric and Power Company, doing business as Dominion 
Virginia Power (Dominion), acting on its own behalf and as agent for 
Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC), submitted to the U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC) a combined license (COL) application, under 
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Subpart C of Part 
52, for an Economic Simplified Boiling-Water Reactor (ESBWR), to be 
designated as North Anna Unit 3, at the North Anna Power Station site 
located in Louisa County, VA. The NRC docketed the application on 
January 28, 2008, and is currently performing a detailed review of the 
application. In addition, the NRC is currently performing a detailed 
review of the GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy application for design 
certification of the Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR).

2.0 Request/Action

    10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) requires that applicants for a combined 
license under 10 CFR Part 52 shall, during the period from docketing of 
a COL application until the Commission makes a finding under 10 CFR 
52.103(g) pertaining to facility operation, submit an annual update to 
the application's final safety analysis report (FSAR), which is a part 
of the application.
    Dominion has requested a one-time exemption from the requirements 
of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) to allow submittal of the FSAR update, 
scheduled for December 2009, by June 30, 2010, and submittal of the 
subsequent FSAR update in 2011.
    In summary, the requested exemption is a one-time schedule change 
from the requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). The exemption would 
allow the applicant to submit the FSAR update scheduled for 2009 by 
June 30, 2010, and to submit the subsequent FSAR update in 2011. The 
FSAR update schedule could not be changed absent the exemption. 
Dominion requested the exemption by letter dated November 17, 2009, 
(Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Accession 
No. ML093240090).

3.0 Discussion

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the Commission may, upon application by 
any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from 
the requirements of 10 CFR Part 50, including Section 50.71(e)(3)(iii) 
when (1) the exemptions are authorized by law, will not present an 
undue risk to public health or safety, and are consistent with the 
common defense and security; and (2) special circumstances are present. 
As relevant to the requested exemption, special circumstances exist if 
(1) ``Compliance would result in undue hardship or other costs that are 
significantly in excess of those contemplated when the regulation was 
adopted, or that are significantly in excess of those incurred by 
others similarly situated'' (10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(iii)) or (2) ``The 
exemption would provide only temporary relief from the applicable 
regulation and the licensee or applicant has made good faith efforts to 
comply with the regulation'' (10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(v)).
    The regulations at 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii), requiring annual FSAR 
update, did not contemplate a situation in which a design control 
document (DCD) referenced in a COL application FSAR was revised shortly 
before the annual FSAR update was due. The ESBWR, referenced in the 
North Anna Unit 3 COL application, is currently undergoing NRC review, 
and Revision 6 of the FSAR, which is a comprehensive revision, was 
submitted to the NRC on August 31, 2009. Consistent with the 
regulations at 10 CFR 50.71(e), the COL FSAR update shall contain 
information to reflect all changes since the previous FSAR update. For 
North Anna, the FSAR update is to include the effects of all changes 
contained in DCD Revision 6. The overall quantity and nature of changes 
in ESBWR FSAR Revision 6 was extensive. Some changes in Revision 6 call 
for detailed analyses and extensive engineering work, including that of 
vendors, to be performed prior to the COL FSAR update. Completing all 
prerequisite activities and preparing the North Anna FSAR update by 
December 2009, would present a considerable and undue burden.
    The requested one-time exemption to incorporate ESBWR FSAR Revision 
6 into the North Anna FSAR update would provide only temporary relief 
from the regulations at 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). The applicant has made 
good faith efforts to comply with 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) by 
incorporating ESBWR FSAR Revision 5 into the prior North Anna FSAR 
update and by providing, on an on-going basis, marked-up COL FSAR pages 
to incorporate changes associated with responses to NRC requests for 
additional information.

Authorized by Law

    The exemption is a one-time schedule exemption from the 
requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). The exemption would allow the 
applicant to submit the North Anna FSAR annual update scheduled for 
2009 by June 30, 2010, and to submit the subsequent FSAR annual update 
in 2011. As stated above, 10 CFR 50.12 allows the NRC to grant 
exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). The NRC 
staff has determined that granting of the requested exemption will not 
result in a violation of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, or 
the Commission's regulations. Therefore, the exemption is authorized by 
law.

No Undue Risk to Public Health and Safety

    The underlying purpose of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) is to provide for 
timely, comprehensive update of the FSAR associated with a COL 
application in order to support an effective and efficient review by 
NRC staff and issuance of the staff's safety evaluation report. The 
requested exemption is solely administrative in nature in that it 
pertains to the schedule for submittal to the NRC of revisions to an 
application under 10 CFR Part 52 for which a license has not been 
granted.
    Based on the above, no new accident precursors are created by the 
exemption; thus, the probability of postulated accidents is not 
increased. Also, based on the above, the consequences of postulated 
accidents are not increased. Therefore, there is no undue risk to 
public health and safety.

Consistent With Common Defense and Security

    The requested exemption would allow the applicant to submit the 
FSAR annual update scheduled for 2009 by June 30, 2010, and to submit 
the subsequent FSAR annual update in 2011. This schedule change has no 
relation to security issues. Therefore, the common defense and security 
is not impacted by this exemption.

Special Circumstances

    Special circumstances, in accordance with 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2), are 
present whenever (1) ``Compliance would result in undue hardship or 
other costs that are significantly in excess of those contemplated when 
the regulation was adopted, or that are significantly in excess of 
those incurred by others similarly situated'' (10 CFR

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50.12(a)(2)(iii)) or (2) ``The exemption would provide only temporary 
relief from the applicable regulation and the licensee or applicant has 
made good faith efforts to comply with the regulation'' (10 CFR 
50.12(a)(2)(v)).
    The underlying purpose of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) is to provide for 
timely, comprehensive update of the FSAR associated with a COL 
application in order to support an effective and efficient review by 
NRC staff and issuance of the staff's safety evaluation report. As 
discussed above, the requested exemption is solely administrative in 
nature in that it pertains to a one-time schedule change for submittal 
of revisions to an application under 10 CFR Part 52 for which a license 
has not been granted. The requested exemption does not affect the 
underlying purpose of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii).
    Therefore, since the underlying purpose of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) 
is achieved, the special circumstances required by 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2) 
for the granting of an exemption from 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) exist.

4.0 Conclusion

    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
50.12, the exemption is authorized by law, will not present an undue 
risk to the public health and safety, and is consistent with the common 
defense and security. Also, special circumstances are present. 
Therefore, the Commission hereby grants Dominion an exemption from the 
requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) pertaining to the North Anna 
Unit 3 COL application to allow submital of the FSAR update scheduled 
for 2009 by June 30, 2010, and submittal of the subsequent FSAR update 
in 2011.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that the 
granting of this exemption will not have a significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment (74 FR 65161).
    This exemption is effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 11th day of January 2010.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jeffrey Cruz,
Chief, ESBWR/ABWR Projects Branch 1, Division of New Reactor Licensing, 
Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2010-664 Filed 1-14-10; 8:45 am]
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