[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 87 (Tuesday, May 6, 2014)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 25715-25730]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-10246]


=======================================================================
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 52

[NRC-2010-0135]
RIN 3150-AI85


ESBWR Design Certification

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Supplemental proposed rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to 
amend its regulations to certify the Economic Simplified Boiling-Water 
Reactor (ESBWR) standard plant design. The proposed ESBWR design 
certification rule was published for public comment on March 24, 2011. 
The NRC is publishing this supplemental proposed rule to provide an 
opportunity for the public to comment on two matters. The first is 
proposed changes related to the analysis methodology supporting the 
ESBWR steam dryer design that were made after the close of the public 
comment period for the proposed ESBWR design certification rule. The 
second is the NRC's proposed clarification of its intent to treat 50 
referenced documents within Revision 10 of the ESBWR design control 
document (DCD) as requirements and matters resolved in subsequent 
licensing and enforcement actions for plants referencing the ESBWR 
design certification. In addition, the supplemental proposed rule 
clarifies that the NRC intends to obtain approval for incorporation by 
reference from the Director of the Office of the Federal Register for 
the generic DCD and 20 publicly-available documents that are referenced 
in the DCD that are intended by the NRC to be requirements. The 
supplemental proposed rule does not offer an opportunity for public 
comment on this clarification of the NRC's intent. Finally, the 
supplemental proposed rule updates the version of the DCD (from 
Revision 9 to Revision 10) which the NRC proposes to obtain approval 
for incorporation by reference from the Office of the Federal Register. 
Revision 10 of the DCD was needed to address the previously described 
matters. The applicant for certification of the ESBWR design is GE-
Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH).

DATES: Submit comments by June 5, 2014. The NRC will not address any 
comments received after this date, except as discussed in Section I.B 
of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods 
(unless this document describes a different method for submitting 
comments on a specific subject):
     Federal rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2010-0135. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-287-
3422; email: [email protected]. For technical questions contact 
the individuals listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section 
of this proposed rule.
     Email comments to: [email protected]. If you do 
not receive an automatic email reply confirming receipt, then contact 
us at 301-415-1677.
     Fax comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission at 301-415-1101.
     Mail comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, ATTN: Rulemakings and 
Adjudications Staff.
     Hand deliver comments to: 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 
Maryland 20852, between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. (Eastern Time) Federal 
workdays; telephone: 301-415-1677.
    For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting 
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: George M. Tartal, telephone: 301-415-
0016, email: [email protected]; or David Misenhimer, telephone: 
301-415-6590, email: [email protected]. Both of the Office of 
New Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 20555-
0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments
    A. Obtaining Information
    1. Documents Related To Changes Associated With the Analysis 
Methodology Supporting the ESBWR Steam Dryer Design
    2. 50 Non-Public Documents Which the NRC Regards As Requirements 
and Are Matters Resolved
    B. Additional Information on Submitting Comments
II. Background
III. Discussion
    A. ESBWR Steam Dryer Design
    1. Correction of Information Related to the Steam Dryer Design
    2. Designation of Revised Steam Dryer Analysis Methodology as 
Tier 2*

[[Page 25716]]

    B. Clarification of 50 Non-Public Documents Which the NRC 
Regards As Requirements and Are Matters Resolved Under Paragraph VI, 
ISSUE RESOLUTION, of the ESBWR Design Certification Rule
    C. Clarification of 20 Publicly-Available Documents Which the 
NRC Regards As Requirements and Are Matters Resolved Under Paragraph 
VI, ISSUE RESOLUTION, of the ESBWR Design Certification Rule
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis
V. Plain Writing
VI. Environmental Impact: Finding of No Significant Environmental 
Impact: Availability
VII. Paperwork Reduction Act Statement
VIII. Regulatory Analysis
IX. Backfitting and Issue Finality
X. Procedures for Access to Sensitive Unclassified Non-Safeguards 
Information (Including Proprietary Information) or Safeguards 
Information for Preparation of Comments on the Supplemental Proposed 
ESBWR Design Certification Rule
XI. Availability of Documents

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2010-0135 when contacting the NRC 
about the availability of information for this action. You may access 
publicly-available information related to this action by any of the 
following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2010-0135.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may access publicly-available documents online in the NRC 
Library at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the 
search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and then select ``Begin Web-
based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's 
Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-
4737, or by email to [email protected]. The ADAMS accession number 
for each document referenced in this document (if that document is 
available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is 
referenced.
     NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public 
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
1. Documents Related To Changes Associated With the Analysis 
Methodology Supporting the ESBWR Steam Dryer Design
    The documents identified in Table 1, relating to the changes 
associated with the analysis methodology supporting the ESBWR steam 
dryer design, are available to interested persons who wish to comment 
on the proposed changes. Some of the documents in Table 1 have two 
versions: a version which is publicly-available, and the (original and 
complete) version which is not publicly available because it contains 
information which is proprietary. If you need to obtain access to the 
non-public version of a document in order to provide comments on the 
proposed changes to the analysis methodology supporting the ESBWR steam 
dryer design, please follow the process described in Section X of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. Before requesting 
access to the non-public version of any document, please obtain the 
publicly-available version of the document to verify if the information 
in the publicly-available version of a document is sufficient to allow 
you to comment on the proposed changes to the analysis methodology 
supporting the ESBWR steam dryer design.

 Table 1--Documents Relating to the Changes Associated With the Analysis Methodology Supporting the ESBWR Steam
                                                  Dryer Design
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                 Publicly- available     Non-publicly available
           Document No.                  Document title          ADAMS accession No.       ADAMS accession No.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                      Supplemental proposed rule documents
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Supplemental Final Safety          Advanced Supplemental      ML14043A134               ML13330A950
 Evaluation Report.                 Safety Evaluation Report
                                    For The Economic
                                    Simplified Boiling-Water
                                    Reactor Standard Plant
                                    Design.
ESBWR DCD, Rev. 10...............  ESBWR Design Control       ML14104A929               ML14104A153
                                    Document, Revision 10.     (package)                 (package)
NEDO-33312, Rev. 5, NEDE-33312P,   GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML13344B157               ML13344B163
 Rev. 5.                            Energy, ``ESBWR Steam
                                    Dryer Acoustic Load
                                    Definition,'' NEDE-
                                    33312P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013, and
                                    NEDO-33312, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013.
NEDO-33313, Rev. 5 NEDE-33313P,    GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML13344B158               ML13344B164
 Rev. 5.                            Energy, ``ESBWR Steam
                                    Dryer Structural
                                    Evaluation,'' NEDE-
                                    33313P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013, and
                                    NEDO-33313, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013.
NEDO-33408, Rev. 5, NEDE-33408P,   GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML13344B159               ML13344B176
 Rev. 5.                            Energy, ``ESBWR Steam                                (part 1)
                                    Dryer--Plant Based Load                             ML13344B175
                                    Evaluation Methodology,                              (part 2)
                                    PBLE01 Model
                                    Description,'' NEDE-
                                    33408P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013, and
                                    NEDO-33408, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[[Page 25717]]

 
         Other NRC documents relevant to the safety review of the ESBWR steam dryer analysis methodology
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
N/A..............................  Letter from Michael E.     ML120170304               N/A
                                    Mayfield, NRC, to Gerald
                                    G. Head, GEH, ``Economic
                                    Simplified Boiling Water
                                    Reactor Design
                                    Certification Rulemaking
                                    Schedule,'' January 19,
                                    2012.
N/A..............................  NRC Staff Audit of Steam   ML120790454               ML120760509
                                    Dryer Design Methodology
                                    Supporting Chapter 3 of
                                    the Economic Simplified
                                    Boiling Water Reactor
                                    Design Certification
                                    Document, Revision
                                    1 (Audit Plan),
                                    March 20, 2012 (PUBLIC),
                                    March 20, 2012
                                    (PROPRIETARY).
N/A..............................  Audit Report of ESBWR      ML12166A127               ML12137A497
                                    Steam Dryer Design
                                    Methodology Supporting
                                    Chapter 3 of ESBWR
                                    Design Control Document
                                    (Audit Report), June 14,
                                    2012 (PUBLIC), May 17,
                                    2012 (PROPRIETARY).
N/A..............................  Letter from Kerri          ML12073A165               N/A
                                    Kavanagh, NRC, to Gerald
                                    G. Head, GEH, ``Quality
                                    Assurance Implementation
                                    Inspection of Economic
                                    Simplified Boiling Water
                                    Reactor,'' March 14,
                                    2012.
NRC Inspection Report 052010/2012- NRC Inspection Report      ML12187A102               ML12129A438
 201.                               05200010/2012-201 and
                                    Notice of Violation,
                                    July 6, 2012 (PUBLIC),
                                    May 31, 2012
                                    (PROPRIETARY).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table 1 Note: Documents whose document number contains ``NEDC'' or ``NEDE'' are non-public and documents whose
  document number contains ``NEDO'' are public.

2. 50 Non-Public Documents Which the NRC Regards as Requirements and 
Are Matters Resolved
    In addition to Revision 10 of the ESBWR DCD, the non-public 
versions of the 50 documents identified in Table 2 are documents which 
the NRC regards as requirements and are matters resolved under 
Paragraph VI, ISSUE RESOLUTION, of the ESBWR Design Certification Rule. 
The documents in Table 2 are available to interested persons who wish 
to comment on the NRC's proposed clarification of its intent to treat 
these non-public documents as requirements and matters resolved in 
subsequent licensing and enforcement actions for plants referencing the 
ESBWR design certification. The NRC notes that three of the documents 
in Table 2 related to the ESBWR steam dryer are the same documents 
described in Section III.A and listed in Table 1 of the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section of this document. Accordingly, the NRC regards 
these three documents as requirements and are matters resolved under 
Paragraph VI, ISSUE RESOLUTION, of the ESBWR Design Certification Rule.
    All of the documents in Table 2 have two versions: A version which 
is publicly-available, and the (original and complete) version which is 
not publicly available because it contains information which is either 
Sensitive Unclassified Non-Safeguards Information (SUNSI) (including 
SUNSI constituting ``proprietary information'' \1\), or Safeguards 
Information (SGI) under Section 147 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, 
as amended. If you need to obtain access to the non-public document in 
order to provide comments on the NRC's proposed clarification of its 
intent to treat the 50 documents in Table 2 as matters resolved in 
subsequent licensing and enforcement actions for plants referencing the 
ESBWR design certification, please follow the process described in 
Section X of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. 
Before requesting access to any non-public document, please obtain the 
publicly-available version of the document to verify if the information 
in the publicly-available version of a document is sufficient to allow 
you to comment on the NRC's proposed clarification of its intent to 
treat the 50 documents in Table 2 as matters resolved in subsequent 
licensing and enforcement actions for plants referencing the ESBWR 
design certification.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ For purposes of this discussion, ``proprietary information'' 
constitutes trade secrets or commercial or financial information 
that are privileged or confidential, as those terms are used under 
the Freedom of Information Act and the NRC's implementing regulation 
at part 9 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

[[Page 25718]]



 Table 2--50 Non-Public Documents Which the NRC Regards as Requirements and are Matters Resolved Under Paragraph
                          VI, ISSUE RESOLUTION, of the ESBWR Design Certification Rule
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                 Publicly- available     Non-publicly available
           Document No.                  Document title          ADAMS accession No.       ADAMS accession No.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NEDE-33391, NEDO-33391...........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML14093A138               N/A
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR                                     (Safeguards information
                                    Safeguards Assessment                                cannot be placed in
                                    Report,'' NEDE-33391,                                ADAMS)
                                    Class III (Safeguards,
                                    Security-Related, and
                                    Proprietary), Revision
                                    3, March 2010, and NEDO-
                                    33391, Class I (Non-
                                    safeguards, Non-security
                                    related, and Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    3, March 2014.
NEDC-31959P, NEDO-31959..........  GE Nuclear Energy, ``Fuel  ML14093A145               ML14093A146
                                    Rod Thermal-Mechanical
                                    Analysis Methodology
                                    (GSTRM),'' NEDC-31959P
                                    (Proprietary), April
                                    1991, and NEDO-31959
                                    (Non-proprietary), April
                                    1991.
NEDC-32992P-A, NEDO-32992-A......  GE Nuclear Energy, J. S.   ML14093A250               ML012610605
                                    Post and A. K. Chung,
                                    ``ODYSY Application for
                                    Stability Licensing
                                    Calculations,'' NEDC-
                                    32992P-A, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), July
                                    2001, and NEDO-32992-A,
                                    Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), July 2001.
NEDC-33139P-A, NEDO-33139-A......  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML14094A227               ML14094A228
                                    ``Cladding Creep
                                    Collapse,'' NEDC-33139P-
                                    A, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), July
                                    2005, and NEDO-33139-A,
                                    Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), July 2005.
NEDE-31758P-A, NEDO-31758-A......  GE Nuclear Energy, ``GE    ML14093A142               ML14093A143
                                    Marathon Control Rod
                                    Assembly,'' NEDE-31758P-
                                    A (Proprietary), October
                                    1991, and NEDO-31758-A
                                    (Non-proprietary),
                                    October 1991.
NEDC-32084P-A, NEDO-32084-A......  GE Nuclear Energy, ``TASC- ML100220484               ML100220485
                                    03A, A Computer Program
                                    for Transient Analysis
                                    of a Single Channel,''
                                    NEDC-32084P-A, Revision
                                    2, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), July
                                    2002, and NEDO-32084-A,
                                    Class 1 (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    2, September 2002.
NEDC-32601 P-A, NEDO-32601-A.....  GE Nuclear Energy,         ML14093A216               ML003740145
                                    ``Methodology and
                                    Uncertainties for Safety
                                    Limit MCPR
                                    Evaluations,'' NEDC-
                                    32601P-A, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    32601-A, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), August
                                    1999.
NEDC-32983P-A, NEDO-32983-A......  GE Nuclear Energy, ``GE    ML072480121               ML072480125
                                    Methodology for Reactor
                                    Pressure Vessel Fast
                                    Neutron Flux
                                    Evaluations,'' Licensing
                                    Topical Report NEDC-
                                    32983P-A, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    2, January 2006, and
                                    NEDO-32983-A, Class I
                                    (Non-proprietary),
                                    Revision 2, January 2006.
NEDC-33075P-A, NEDO-33075-A......  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML080310396               ML080310402
                                    Energy, ``General
                                    Electric Boiling Water
                                    Reactor Detect and
                                    Suppress Solution--
                                    Confirmation Density,''
                                    NEDC-33075P-A, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33075-A, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    6, January 2008.
NEDC-33079P, NEDO-33079..........  GE Nuclear Energy,         ML053460471               ML051390233
                                    ``ESBWR Test and
                                    Analysis Program
                                    Description,'' NEDC-
                                    33079P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    1, March 2005, and NEDO-
                                    33079, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    1, November 2005.
NEDC-33083P-A, NEDO-33083-A......  GE Nuclear Energy,         ML102770606               ML102770608
                                    ``TRACG Application for
                                    ESBWR,'' NEDC-33083P-A,
                                    Revision 1, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), September
                                    2010, and NEDO-33083-A,
                                    Revision 1, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.
NEDC-33237P-A, NEDO-33237-A......  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML102770246               ML102770244
                                    ``GE14 for ESBWR--
                                    Critical Power
                                    Correlation,
                                    Uncertainty, and OLMCPR
                                    Development,'' NEDC-
                                    33237P-A, Revision 5,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    and NEDO-33237-A,
                                    Revision 5, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.
NEDC-33238P, NEDO-33238..........  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML060050328               ML060050330
                                    ``GE14 Pressure Drop
                                    Characteristics,'' NEDC-
                                    33238P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33238, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), December
                                    2005.
NEDC-33239P-A, NEDO-33239P-A.....  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML102800405               ML102800408
                                    ``GE14 for ESBWR Nuclear                             (part 1)
                                    Design Report,'' NEDC-                              ML102800425
                                    33239P-A, Class III                                  (part 2)
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33239-A, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    5, October 2010.
NEDC-33240P-A, NEDO-33240-A......  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML102770060               ML102770061
                                    ``GE14E Fuel Assembly
                                    Mechanical Design
                                    Report,'' NEDC-33240P-A,
                                    Revision 1, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33240-A, Revision 1,
                                    Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.
NEDC-33242P-A, NEDO-33242-A......  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML102730885               ML102730886
                                    ``GE14 for ESBWR Fuel
                                    Rod Thermal-Mechanical
                                    Design Report,'' NEDC-
                                    33242P-A, Revision 2,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    and NEDO-33242-A,
                                    Revision 2, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.
NEDC-33326P-A, NEDO-33326-A......  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML102740191               ML102740193
                                    ``GE14E for ESBWR                                    (part 1)
                                    Initial Core Nuclear                                ML102740194
                                    Design Report,'' NEDC-                               (part 2)
                                    33326P-A, Revision 1,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    and NEDO-33326-A,
                                    Revision 1, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.

[[Page 25719]]

 
NEDC-33374P-A, NEDO-33374-A......  GE-Hitachi Nuclear         ML102860687               ML102860688
                                    Energy, ``Safety
                                    Analysis Report for Fuel
                                    Storage Racks
                                    Criticality Analysis for
                                    ESBWR Plants,'' NEDC-
                                    33374P-A, Revision 4,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    September 2010, and NEDO-
                                    33374-A, Revision 4,
                                    Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.
NEDC-33456P, NEDO-33456..........  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML090920867               ML090920868
                                    ``Full-Scale Pressure
                                    Drop Testing for a
                                    Simulated GE14E Fuel
                                    Bundle,'' NEDC-33456P,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    and NEDO-33456, Class I
                                    (Non-proprietary),
                                    Revision 0, March 2009.
NEDE-10958-PA, NEDO-10958-A......  General Electric Company,  ML102290144               ML092820214
                                    ``General Electric
                                    Thermal Analysis Basis
                                    Data, Correlation and
                                    Design Application,''
                                    NEDE-10958-PA, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and
                                    ``General Electric BWR
                                    Thermal Analysis Basis
                                    (GETAB): Data,
                                    Correlation and Design
                                    Application,'' NEDO-
                                    10958-A, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), January
                                    1977.
NEDE-24011-P-A-16, NEDO-24011-A-   Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML091340077               ML091340081
 16.                                ``GESTAR II General
                                    Electric Standard
                                    Application for Reactor
                                    Fuel,'' NEDE-24011-P-A-
                                    16, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    24011-A-16, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    16, October 2007.
NEDE-24011-P-A-US-16, NEDO-24011-  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML091340080               ML091340082
 A-US-16.                           ``GESTAR II General
                                    Electric Standard
                                    Application for Reactor
                                    Fuel, Supplement for
                                    United States,'' NEDE-
                                    24011-P-A-US-16, Class
                                    III (Proprietary), and
                                    NEDO-24011-A-US-16,
                                    Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    16, October 2007.
NEDE-30130-P-A, NEDO-30130-A.....  General Electric Company,  ML14104A064               ML070400570
                                    ``Steady State Nuclear
                                    Methods,'' NEDE-30130-P-
                                    A, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), April
                                    1985, and NEDO-30130-A,
                                    Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), May 1985.
NEDE-31152P, NEDO-31152..........  Global Nuclear Fuel,       ML071510287               ML071510289
                                    ``Global Nuclear Fuels
                                    Fuel Bundle Designs,''
                                    NEDE-31152P, Revision 9,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    May 2007, and NEDO-
                                    33152, Revision 9, Class
                                    I (Non-proprietary), May
                                    2007.
NEDE-32176P, NEDO-32176..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML080370271               ML080370276
                                    Energy, J. G. M.
                                    Andersen, et al.,
                                    ``TRACG Model
                                    Description,'' NEDE-
                                    32176P, Revision 4,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    January 2008, and NEDO-
                                    32176, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    4, January 2008.
NEDE-33083 Supplement 1P-A, NEDO-  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102770552               ML102770550
 33083 Supplement 1-A.              Energy, B.S. Shiralkar,
                                    et al, ``TRACG
                                    Application for ESBWR
                                    Stability Analysis,''
                                    NEDE-33083, Supplement
                                    1P-A, Revision 2, Class
                                    III (Proprietary),
                                    September 2010, and NEDO-
                                    33083, Supplement 1-A,
                                    Revision 2, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.
NEDE-33083 Supplement 2P-A, NEDO-  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML103000353               ML103000355
 33083 Supplement 2-A.              Energy, ``TRACG
                                    Application for ESBWR
                                    Anticipated Transient
                                    Without Scram
                                    Analyses,'' NEDE-33083,
                                    Supplement 2P-A,
                                    Revision 2, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), October
                                    2010 and NEDO-33083,
                                    Supplement 2-A, Revision
                                    2, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), October
                                    2010.
NEDE-33083 Supplement 3P-A, NEDO-  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102770606               ML102770608
 33083 Supplement 3-A.              Energy, ``TRACG
                                    Application for ESBWR
                                    Transient Analysis,''
                                    NEDE-33083, Supplement
                                    3P-A, Revision 1, Class
                                    III (Proprietary), and
                                    NEDO-33083, Supplement 3-
                                    A, Revision 1, Class I
                                    (Non-proprietary),
                                    September 2010.
NEDE-33197P-A, NEDO-33197-A......  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102810320               ML102810341
                                    Energy, ``Gamma
                                    Thermometer System for
                                    LPRM Calibration and
                                    Power Shape
                                    Monitoring,'' NEDE-
                                    33197P-A, Revision 3,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    and NEDO-33197-A,
                                    Revision 3, Class I,
                                    (Non-proprietary),
                                    October 2010.
NEDE-33217P, NEDO-33217..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML100480284               ML100480285
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Man-
                                    Machine Interface System
                                    and Human Factors
                                    Engineering
                                    Implementation Plan,''
                                    NEDE-33217P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33217, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    6, February 2010.
NEDE-33220P, NEDO-33220..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML100480209               ML100480202
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Human
                                    Factors Engineering
                                    Allocation of Function
                                    Implementation Plan,''
                                    NEDE-33220P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33220, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    4, February 2010.
NEDE-33221P, NEDO-33221..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML100480212               ML100480213
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Human
                                    Factors Engineering Task
                                    Analysis Implementation
                                    Plan,'' NEDE-33221P,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    and NEDO-33221, Class I
                                    (Non-proprietary),
                                    Revision 4, February
                                    2010.
NEDE-33226P, NEDO-33226..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML100550837               ML100550844
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR--
                                    Software Management
                                    Program Manual,'' NEDE-
                                    33226P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    5, February 2010, and
                                    NEDO-33226, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    5, February 2010.

[[Page 25720]]

 
NEDE-33243P-A, NEDO-33243-A......  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102740171               ML102740178
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Control
                                    Rod Nuclear Design,''
                                    NEDE-33243P-A, Revision
                                    2, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), September
                                    2010, and NEDO-33243- A,
                                    Revision 2, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.
NEDE-33244P-A, NEDO-33244-A......  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102770208               ML102770209
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Marathon
                                    Control Rod Mechanical
                                    Design Report,'' NEDE-
                                    33244P-A, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    2, September 2010, and
                                    NEDO-33244-A, Revision
                                    2, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.
NEDE-33245P, NEDO-33245..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML100550839               ML100550847
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR--
                                    Software Quality
                                    Assurance Program
                                    Manual,'' NEDE-33245P,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    Revision 5, February
                                    2010, and NEDO-33245,
                                    Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    5, February 2010.
NEDE-33259P-A, NEDO-33259-A......  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102920241               ML102920248
                                    Energy, ``Reactor
                                    Internals Flow Induced
                                    Vibration Program,''
                                    NEDE-33259P-A, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    3, October 2010, and
                                    NEDO-33259-A, Class I
                                    (Non-proprietary),
                                    Revision 3, October 2010.
NEDE-33261P, NEDO-33261..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML082600720               ML082600721
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR
                                    Containment Load
                                    Definition,'' NEDE-
                                    33261P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33261, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    2, June 2008.
NEDE-33268P, NEDO-33268..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML100480179               ML100480180
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Human
                                    Factors Engineering
                                    Human-System Interface
                                    Design Implementation
                                    Plan,'' NEDE-33268P,
                                    Class III (Proprietary),
                                    and NEDO-33268, Class I
                                    (Non-proprietary),
                                    Revision 5, February
                                    2010.
NEDE-33276P, NEDO-33276..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML100480182               ML100480183
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Human
                                    Factors Engineering
                                    Verification and
                                    Validation
                                    Implementation Plan,''
                                    NEDE-33276P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33276, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    4, February 2010.
NEDE-33295P, NEDO-33295..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102880103               ML102880104
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Cyber
                                    Security Program Plan,''
                                    NEDE-33295P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    2, September 2010, and
                                    NEDO-33295, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    2, September 2010.
NEDE-33304P, NEDO-33304..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML101450251               ML101450253
                                    Energy, ``GEH ESBWR
                                    Setpoint Methodology,''
                                    NEDE-33304P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33304, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    4, May 2010.
NEDE-33312P, NEDO-33312..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML13344B157               ML13344B163
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Steam
                                    Dryer Acoustic Load
                                    Definition,'' NEDE-
                                    33312P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013, and
                                    NEDO-33312, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013.
NEDE-33313P, NEDO-33313..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML13344B158               ML13344B164
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Steam
                                    Dryer Structural
                                    Evaluation,'' NEDE-
                                    33313P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013, and
                                    NEDO-33313, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013.
NEDE-33408P, NEDO-33408..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML13344B159               ML13344B176 (part 1)
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR Steam                               ML13344B175
                                    Dryer--Plant Based Load                             (part 2)
                                    Evaluation Methodology,
                                    PBLE01 Model
                                    Description,'' NEDE-
                                    33408P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013, and
                                    NEDO-33408, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    5, December 2013.
NEDE-33440P, NEDO-33440..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy  ML100920316               ML100920317
                                    ``ESBWR Safety Analysis-                             (part 1)
                                    Additional                                          ML100920318
                                    Information,'' NEDE-                                 (part 2)
                                    33440P, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), and NEDO-
                                    33440, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    2, March 2010.
NEDE-33516P-A, NEDO-33516-A......  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102880499               ML102880500
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR
                                    Qualification Plan
                                    Requirements for a 72-
                                    Hour Duty Cycle
                                    Battery,'' NEDE-33516P-
                                    A, Revision 2, Class III
                                    (Proprietary), September
                                    2010, and NEDO-33516-A,
                                    Revision 2, Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.
NEDE-33536P, NEDO-33536..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102780329               ML102780330
                                    Energy, ``Control
                                    Building and Reactor
                                    Building Environmental
                                    Temperature Analysis for
                                    ESBWR,'' NEDE-33536P,
                                    Class III (Security-
                                    Related and
                                    Proprietary), Revision
                                    1, October 2010, and
                                    NEDO-33536, Class I (Non-
                                    security Related and Non-
                                    proprietary), Revision
                                    1, October 2010.
NEDE-33572P, NEDO-33572..........  GE Hitachi Nuclear         ML102740579               ML102740566
                                    Energy, ``ESBWR ICS and
                                    PCCS Condenser
                                    Combustible Gas
                                    Mitigation and
                                    Structural Evaluation,''
                                    NEDE-33572P, Class II
                                    (Proprietary), Revision
                                    3, September 2010, and
                                    NEDO-33572, Revision 3,
                                    Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), September
                                    2010.

[[Page 25721]]

 
Letter w/attachment..............  Letter from R. J. Reda     ML14093A140               ML14094A240
                                    (GE) to R. C. Jones, Jr.
                                    (NRC), MFN 098-96,
                                    ``Implementation of
                                    Improved Steady-State
                                    Nuclear Methods,'' Class
                                    III (Proprietary), July
                                    2, 1996, and Letter from
                                    J. G. Head (GEH) to NRC
                                    Document Control Desk,
                                    MFN 098-96 Supplement 1,
                                    Class I (Non-
                                    proprietary), March 31,
                                    2014.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table 2 Note: Documents whose document number contains ``NEDC'' or ``NEDE'' are non-public and documents whose
  document number contains ``NEDO'' are public.

    Throughout the development of the ESBWR design certification rule, 
the NRC may post additional documents related to this rule, including 
public comments, on the Federal rulemaking Web site at http://www.regulations.gov under Docket ID NRC-2010-0135. The Federal 
rulemaking Web site allows you to receive alerts when changes or 
additions occur in a docket folder. To subscribe: (1) Navigate to the 
docket folder (NRC-2010-0135); (2) click the ``Sign up for Email 
Alerts'' link; and (3) enter your email address and select how 
frequently you would like to receive emails (daily, weekly, or 
monthly).
    Documents that are not publicly available because they are 
considered to be SUNSI or SGI may be available to interested persons 
who may wish to comment on the changes associated with the analysis 
methodology supporting the ESBWR steam dryer design. Such persons shall 
follow the procedures described in Section X of the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section of this document in order to obtain access to those 
documents.

B. Additional Information on Submitting Comments

General Information
    Please include Docket ID NRC-2010-0135 in the subject line of your 
comment submission, in order to ensure that the NRC is able to make 
your comment submission available to the public in this docket.
    The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact 
information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your 
comment submission. The NRC will post all comment submissions at http://www.regulations.gov as well as enter the comment submissions into 
ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to remove 
identifying or contact information.
    If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons 
for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to 
include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be 
publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should 
state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to 
remove such information before making the comment submissions available 
to the public or entering the comment into ADAMS.
Comments Based Upon a Review of Non-Public Documents Obtained Under the 
Procedures in Section X of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Section of 
This Document
    The NRC strongly encourages commenters, submitting comments based 
upon a review of non-public documents to which the commenter obtained 
access under the procedures in Section X of the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section of this document, to avoid submitting comments with 
non-public information derived from those non-public documents. In many 
cases, effective arguments may be presented by referring to the 
location of relevant information in those documents. In other cases, a 
summary of the key information in the document, and a reference to the 
portion of the document supporting the comment, will provide adequate 
basis for the comment without disclosing non-public information. 
However, if the comment must include non-public information, the 
commenter must submit the comments in accordance with Sec.  2.390 of 
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR). The NRC 
recommends preparing two versions of your comment submission--one 
public and one non-public, and submitting an affidavit with your 
comment submission explaining, with specificity, why the information in 
your comment submission should be regarded as non-public.
Scope of Comments
    The NRC is limiting the scope of the supplemental proposed rule to 
two areas, which are further discussed in Section III of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document:
     Proposed changes related to the analysis methodology 
supporting the ESBWR steam dryer design that were made after the close 
of the public comment period for the proposed ESBWR design 
certification rule (76 FR 16549; March 24, 2011).
     The NRC's proposed clarification of its intent to treat 50 
non-public documents referenced in the ESBWR DCD as requirements and 
matters resolved in subsequent licensing and enforcement actions for 
plants referencing the ESBWR design certification.
    The NRC will not address in a final rule any comments submitted 
that are outside the scope of this supplemental proposed rule. For 
example, comments on Revision 10 of the ESBWR DCD which do not relate 
to the changes in the analysis methodology supporting the ESBWR steam 
dryer design which were made after the close of the public comment 
period for the proposed ESBWR design certification rule, would be 
regarded as outside the scope of the commenting opportunity with 
respect to the steam dryer analysis methodology.
    The NRC notes that some of the documents listed in Tables 1 and 2 
in Section I.A of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this 
document contain SUNSI, SGI, or proprietary information and, therefore, 
are not publicly available. For each of those non-publicly available 
documents, GEH has created a publicly-available version of the 
document. If a commenter needs to review the material in a non-publicly 
available document in order to submit comments, the commenter should 
first review the publicly-available version of the document. If the 
commenter determines, after reviewing the publicly-available version, 
that access to the non-public document is needed in order to provide 
meaningful comments within the scope of comments as previously 
described, then the

[[Page 25722]]

commenter should seek access to the non-public document in accordance 
with the procedures in Section X of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION 
section of this document.
Late-filed Comments
    The NRC will not be obligated to address any comments received 
after June 5, 2014, nor will the NRC entertain any requests for 
extension of the public comment period unless the commenter is approved 
to access SUNSI or SGI as described in Section X of the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section of this document, because of the substantial delays 
in the ESBWR rulemaking. If a commenter is approved to access SUNSI or 
SGI, the public comment period will be extended exclusively for that 
commenter, but limited to the matters for which access to SUNSI or SGI 
is necessary to make informed comments.

II. Background

ESBWR Design Certification and March 2011 Proposed Rule

    Subpart B of 10 CFR part 52 sets forth the process for obtaining 
standard design certifications. On August 24, 2005 (70 FR 56745; 
September 28, 2005), in accordance with subpart B of 10 CFR part 52, 
GEH submitted its application for certification of the ESBWR standard 
plant design to the NRC. The NRC formally accepted the application as a 
docketed application for design certification (Docket No. 52-010) on 
December 1, 2005 (70 FR 73311; December 9, 2005). The pre-application 
information submitted before the NRC formally accepted the application 
can be found in ADAMS under Docket No. PROJ0717 (Project No. 717).
    The application for design certification of the ESBWR design has 
been referenced in the following combined license (COL) applications as 
of the date of this document: (1) Detroit Edison Company, Fermi Unit 3, 
Docket No. 52-033 (73 FR 73350; December 2, 2008); (2) Dominion 
Virginia Power, North Anna Unit 3, Docket No. 52-017 (73 FR 6528; 
February 4, 2008); (3) Entergy Operations, Inc., Grand Gulf Unit 3, 
Docket No. 52-024 (73 FR 22180; April 24, 2008) (APPLICATION 
SUSPENDED); (4) Entergy Operations, Inc., River Bend Unit 3, Docket No. 
52-036 (73 FR 75141; December 10, 2008) (APPLICATION SUSPENDED); and 
(5) Exelon Nuclear Texas Holdings, LLC, Victoria County Station Units 1 
and 2, Docket Nos. 52-31 and 52-032 (73 FR 66059; November 6, 2008) 
(APPLICATION WITHDRAWN).
    On March 24, 2011 (76 FR 16549), the NRC published a proposed rule 
that would certify the ESBWR design in the Commission's regulations. 
The public comment period closed on June 7, 2011. The NRC received six 
comment submissions from members of the public. In addition, on 
September 9, 2011, the Commission issued a Memorandum and Order, CLI-
11-05, 74 NRC 141, referring these comment submissions to the NRC staff 
for consideration as comments on the proposed ESBWR design 
certification rule. Id. at 176.

Issues on the Analytical Methodology for Design of the ESBWR Steam 
Dryer

    Following the close of the public comment period on the proposed 
ESBWR design certification rule, the NRC staff identified issues 
applicable to the ESBWR steam dryer structural analysis. These issues 
were the result of NRC consideration of information obtained during the 
NRC's review of a license amendment request for a power uprate at an 
operating boiling-waterreactor (BWR) nuclear power plant. As this BWR 
power uprate used the same methodology for steam dryer analysis as was 
being proposed for the ESBWR, the NRC staff needed to resolve these 
issues before moving forward with the ESBWR design. The NRC informed 
GEH by letter dated January 19, 2012 (ADAMS Accession No. ML120170304), 
that it identified issues ``relevant to the conclusions in its Final 
Safety Evaluation Report (FSER) [ADAMS Accession No. ML103070392] 
issued in support of the ESBWR [design certification] rulemaking. 
Specifically, errors have been identified in the benchmarking GEH used 
as a basis for determining fluctuating pressure loads on the steam 
dryer, and errors have been identified in a number of GEH's modeling 
parameters. These errors may affect the conclusions in the staff's FSER 
and need to be addressed before we complete the ESBWR [design 
certification].'' Consequently, the NRC staff informed GEH that the 
rulemaking was on hold until the errors were adequately addressed.
    In March 2012, the NRC staff conducted an audit of the GEH steam 
dryer analysis methodology at the GEH facility in Wilmington, North 
Carolina. In addition, in April 2012, the NRC staff performed a vendor 
inspection at that facility of the quality assurance program for GEH 
engineering methods. As a result of the audit and inspection, the NRC 
staff submitted requests for additional information (RAIs) to support a 
supplemental FSER. In addressing these RAIs, GEH made a number of 
significant changes in Revision 10 to the ESBWR DCD and in the 
supporting documentation. Those changes did not result in modifications 
to the overall design of the steam dryer but did result in replacing 
relevant sections in the DCD, withdrawing referenced licensing topical 
reports (LTRs) and replacing them with new engineering reports, 
designating the new engineering reports as Tier 2* information, and 
adding new Inspections, Tests, Analyses, and Acceptance Criteria 
(ITAAC). References to publicly-available documents associated with the 
development of the supplemental FSER, including RAIs and responses, 
public meeting notices and summaries, etc., are listed in the NRC's 
supplemental FSER (ADAMS Accession No. ML14043A134). Because these 
changes to the ESBWR steam dryer description in the DCD and supporting 
documentation occurred after the close of the public comment 
opportunity on the proposed ESBWR design certification rule, the NRC is 
publishing this supplemental proposed rule to provide an opportunity 
for public comment on these changes.
    The NRC notes that GEH made several other changes in Revision 10 to 
the ESBWR DCD which are not related to the ESBWR steam dryer analysis 
methodology. The NRC is not providing an opportunity for public 
comments on these other changes, and the NRC will explain in a final 
ESBWR design certification rule why these additional ESBWR DCD changes 
did not require a supplemental comment opportunity. The NRC will not be 
obligated to provide responses to any comments submitted in this 
supplemental comment opportunity which address matters unrelated to the 
changes to the ESBWR steam dryer analysis methodology.

III. Discussion

    This section describes the changes that the NRC made to the 
proposed ESBWR design certification rule text and the changes GEH made 
to the analysis methodology supporting the ESBWR steam dryer design. A 
more detailed description of the changes to the analysis methodology 
and compliance with the NRC's regulations can be found in the NRC's 
supplemental FSER. This section also clarifies the NRC's intention that 
50 non-public documents referenced in the ESBWR DCD are considered to 
be requirements and matters resolved under paragraph VI, ISSUE 
RESOLUTION, of the ESBWR design certification rule. This section also 
clarifies which documents would contain binding requirements for the 
ESBWR design and the NRC's intention

[[Page 25723]]

to clarify in the final ESBWR design certification rule that these 
documents would be incorporated by reference.

A. ESBWR Steam Dryer Design

1. Correction of Information Related to the Steam Dryer Design
    Following the issuance of the FSER for the ESBWR design 
certification on March 9, 2011, the NRC staff identified issues 
applicable to the ESBWR steam dryer structural analysis based on 
information obtained during the NRC's review of a license amendment 
request for a power uprate at an operating BWR nuclear power plant. 
Consequently, the NRC staff communicated to GEH that it was concerned 
that the basis for its FSER on the ESBWR DCD and the safety evaluation 
reports on these topical reports was no longer valid. Specifically, 
errors were identified in the benchmarking GEH used as a basis for 
determining fluctuating pressure loading on the steam dryer, and errors 
were identified in a number of GEH's modeling parameters. The NRC staff 
subsequently issued RAIs and held multiple public meetings to identify 
issues and clarify the steam dryer analysis methodology. The NRC staff 
also conducted an audit of the GEH steam dryer analysis methodology at 
the GEH facility in Wilmington, North Carolina, in March 2012, and a 
vendor inspection at that facility of the quality assurance program for 
GEH engineering methods in April 2012.
    To document the resolution of those issues, GEH revised the ESBWR 
DCD by removing references to the LTRs which address the ESBWR steam 
dryer structural evaluation and to reference new engineering reports 
that describe the updated ESBWR steam dryer analysis methodology. The 
following four LTRs were removed by GEH (public and proprietary 
versions cited):
     NEDE-33313 and NEDE-33313P, ``ESBWR Steam Dryer Structural 
Evaluation,'' all revisions;
     NEDE-33312 and NEDE-33312P, ``ESBWR Steam Dryer Acoustic 
Load Definition,'' all revisions;
     NEDC-33408 and NEDC-33408P, ``ESBWR Steam Dryer-Plant 
Based Load Evaluation Methodology,'' all revisions; and
     NEDC-33408, Supplement 1, and NEDC-33408P, Supplement 1, 
``ESBWR Steam Dryer--Plant Based Load Evaluation Methodology Supplement 
1,'' all revisions.
    To replace the information formerly provided by the four LTRs, GEH 
revised the ESBWR DCD to reference three new engineering reports 
(public and proprietary versions cited):
     NEDO-33312 and NEDE-33312P, Rev. 5, December 2013, ``ESBWR 
Steam Dryer Acoustic Load Definition;''
     NEDO-33408 and NEDE-33408P, Rev. 5, December 2013, ``ESBWR 
Steam Dryer--Plant Based Load Evaluation Methodology--PBLE01 Model 
Description;'' and
     NEDO-33313 and NEDE-33313P, Rev. 5, December 2013, ``ESBWR 
Steam Dryer Structural Evaluation.''
    The following DCD sections were revised by GEH to correct errors 
and provide additional information related to the design and evaluation 
of the structural integrity of the ESBWR reactors pressure vessel 
internals related to the steam dryer:
     Tier 1, Chapter 2, Section 2.1, ``Nuclear Steam Supply;''
     Tier 1, Chapter 2, Section 2.1.1, ``Reactor Pressure 
Vessel and Internals;''
     Tier 2, Chapter 1, Tables 1.6-1, 1.9-21, and 1D-1;
     Tier 2, Chapter 3, Section 3.9.2, ``Dynamic Testing and 
Analysis of Systems, Components and Equipment;''
     Tier 2, Chapter 3, Section 3.9.5, ``Reactor Pressure 
Vessel Internals;''
     Tier 2, Chapter 3, Section 3.9.9, ``COL Information;''
     Tier 2, Chapter 3, Section 3.9.10, ``References;'' and
     Tier 2, Chapter 3, Appendix 3L, ``Reactor Internals Flow 
Induced Vibration Program.''
    The revisions to these documents enhance the detailed design and 
evaluation process related to the structural integrity of the steam 
dryer in several ways. For example, the source of data used to 
benchmark the analysis methodology was changed in Revision 10 to the 
ESBWR DCD to a different operating nuclear power plant for which the 
NRC recently authorized an extended power uprate. In addition, the 
details of the design methodology were made more restrictive in several 
respects, including limiting the analysis method for fillet welds and 
using more conservative data and assumptions. The changes also 
designate additional information as Tier 2* and clarify regulatory 
process steps for completing the detailed design and startup testing of 
the ESBWR steam dryer, including COL information items to be satisfied 
by a COL applicant, ITAAC to be met by a COL licensee, and model 
license conditions that can be proposed by a COL applicant. References 
to the relevant documents associated with the changes made to the steam 
dryer analysis methodology are listed in Section I.A of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
    The NRC staff has reviewed the revised ESBWR DCD sections, new GEH 
engineering reports, and RAI responses and prepared a supplemental 
FSER. The supplemental FSER concludes that Revision 10 to the ESBWR DCD 
and the referenced engineering reports provide sufficient information 
to support the adequacy of the design basis for the ESBWR reactor 
internals. The supplemental FSER also concludes that the design process 
for reactor internals is acceptable and meets the requirements of 10 
CFR part 50, appendix A, General Design Criteria 1, 2, 4, and 10; 10 
CFR 50.55a; and 10 CFR part 52. Finally, the supplemental FSER 
concludes that the ESBWR design documentation in Revision 10 to the 
ESBWR DCD is acceptable and that GEH's application for design 
certification meets the requirements of 10 CFR part 52, subpart B, that 
are applicable and technically relevant to the ESBWR standard plant 
design. The NRC concludes, based on the review of application materials 
in the March 2011 FSER and the supplemental FSER, that the ESBWR steam 
dryer design meets all applicable NRC requirements and can be 
incorporated by reference in a combined license application.
    This supplemental proposed rule provides an opportunity to comment 
on the proposed changes related to the analysis methodology supporting 
the ESBWR steam dryer design. Documents relevant to the proposed 
changes related to the analysis methodology supporting the ESBWR steam 
dryer design are listed in Table 1, Section I.A of the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section of this document. The NRC notes that three of these 
documents are also listed in Table 2. These three non-publicly 
available documents--addressing the ESBWR steam dryer analysis 
methodology--are intended by the NRC to be requirements and matters 
resolved under Paragraph VI, ISSUE RESOLUTION, of the proposed ESBWR 
design certification rule. The status of the non-public documents 
identified in Table 2 as requirements and matters resolved is discussed 
in Section III.B of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this 
document.

2. Designation of Revised Steam Dryer Analysis Methodology as Tier 2*

    The NRC proposes to designate the revised ESBWR steam dryer 
analysis methodology as Tier 2* information throughout the life of any 
license referencing the ESBWR design certification rule. This is a 
change from Revision 9 of the ESBWR DCD, which identified much of this 
information (in its earlier form before the revisions reflected in 
Revision 10) as Tier 2. Therefore, the ESBWR steam dryer

[[Page 25724]]

analysis methodology was not identified as Tier 2* information in the 
proposed ESBWR design certification rule under paragraph VIII.B.6.b of 
appendix E of 10 CFR part 52. References to the DCD are listed in Table 
1, Section I.A of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this 
document.
    In this supplemental proposed rule, the NRC is proposing to 
designate the revised ESBWR steam dryer analysis methodology as Tier 2* 
for two reasons. First, as described in Section III.A.1 of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document, the NRC's 
experience with other applications using this methodology highlighted 
the importance of the proper application of the steam dryer analysis 
methodology. Therefore, the NRC believes that it is necessary to review 
any changes a referencing applicant or licensee proposes to the 
methodology from that which the NRC previously reviewed and approved. 
Second, in Revision 10 of the ESBWR DCD, GEH revised the designation of 
this methodology to Tier 2* and, therefore, the rule's designation 
would be consistent with the GEH's designation in the DCD.
    This supplemental proposed rule provides an opportunity to comment 
on the proposed designation as Tier 2* of certain information related 
to the analysis methodology supporting the ESBWR steam dryer design. 
Documents relevant to the proposed designation as Tier 2* of certain 
information related to the analysis methodology supporting the ESBWR 
steam dryer design are also listed in Table 1, Section I.A of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

B. Clarification of 50 Non-Public Documents Which the NRC Regards as 
Requirements and Are Matters Resolved Under Paragraph VI, ISSUE 
RESOLUTION, of the ESBWR Design Certification Rule

    In Tier 2, Section 1.6 of Revision 9 of the ESBWR DCD, GEH stated 
that a number of referenced documents are incorporated by reference, in 
whole or in part, in the ESBWR DCD Tier 2. Accordingly, the NRC 
questioned whether these documents contain binding requirements and 
whether they should also be incorporated by reference in the ESBWR 
design certification rule. The NRC reviewed these document references 
and determined that, while many of these documents do contain binding 
requirements and should be incorporated by reference, some of those 
documents do not contain binding requirements and therefore should be 
considered as references only.
    To address the NRC's concerns, GEH revised Section 1.6 of Revision 
10 of the ESBWR DCD to clearly identify documents containing 
requirements, and which documents are references which do not contain 
binding requirements. Table 1.6-1 of the DCD lists the GE and GEH 
documents which the NRC regards as requirements for the ESBWR design, 
and are, therefore, incorporated by reference into the ESBWR DCD. Table 
1.6-2 of the DCD lists the non-GE and non-GEH documents which the NRC 
regards as requirements for the ESBWR design, and are, therefore, 
incorporated by reference into the ESBWR DCD. The NRC notes that GEH's 
incorporation by reference of the documents in Tables 1.6-1 and 1.6-2 
into the ESBWR DCD is not the same as the Director of the Office of the 
Federal Register's approval of incorporation by reference under 1 CFR 
part 51. Table 1.6-3 of the DCD lists information which is general 
reference material and which the NRC does not consider to be a 
requirement of the ESBWR design certification rule. The documents in 
Table 1.6-3 of the DCD are not incorporated by reference into the ESBWR 
DCD by GEH, and the NRC does not intend to obtain approval from the 
Director of the Office of the Federal Register for incorporation by 
reference of the documents in Table 1.6-3 of the DCD.
    The NRC also notes that many of these documents containing 
requirements also contain either SUNSI (proprietary information, and 
security-related information subject to non-disclosure under 10 CFR 
2.390(a)(7)(vi)) or SGI. For each of these documents containing SUNSI 
or SGI there is a corresponding, publicly-available version. In this 
supplemental proposed rule, the NRC is clarifying that the NRC intends 
the 50 non-public documents in Table 2 of Section I.A of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document to be both 
requirements and matters resolved under paragraph VI, ISSUE RESOLUTION, 
of the ESBWR design certification rule.

C. Clarification of 20 Publicly-Available Documents Which the NRC 
Regards As Requirements and Are Matters Resolved Under Paragraph VI, 
ISSUE RESOLUTION, of the ESBWR Design Certification Rule

    In Section III of the proposed ESBWR design certification rule 
(proposed appendix E to 10 CFR part 52), the NRC proposed that Revision 
9 of the ESBWR DCD be the sole document which would be incorporated by 
reference, as a binding requirement, into the Commission's regulations 
for the ESBWR design certification. However, as previously described, 
after the proposed rule was issued and the public comment period had 
expired, the NRC determined that 20 documents listed in Table 1.6-1 of 
Revision 9 to the ESBWR DCD, publicly available in their entirety, were 
regarded by the NRC as requirements and matters resolved under 
Paragraph VI, ISSUE RESOLUTION, of the proposed ESBWR design 
certification rule. However, the NRC did not clearly identify in 
proposed paragraph III.A of the proposed ESBWR design certification 
rule identifying these publicly-available documents as approved by the 
Director of the Office of the Federal Register for incorporation by 
reference. The NRC is clarifying that it intends to obtain approval for 
incorporation by reference from the Director of the Office of the 
Federal Register under 1 CFR 51.9 for the 20 documents listed in Table 
3 of Section III.C of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this 
document.

       Table 3--20 Publicly-Available Documents to be Approved for
 Incorporation by Reference Into the ESBWR Design Certification Rule (10
  CFR part 52, appendix E) by the Director of the Office of the Federal
                                Register.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Document No.             Document title      ADAMS accession No.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
BC-TOP-3-A..................  Bechtel, ``Tornado    ML14093A218
                               and Extreme Wind
                               Design Criteria for
                               Nuclear Power
                               Plants,'' Topical
                               Report BC-TOP-3-A,
                               Revision 3, August
                               1974.
BC-TOP-9A...................  Bechtel, ``Design of  ML14093A217
                               Structures for
                               Missile Impact,''
                               Topical Report BC-
                               TOP-9A, Revision 2,
                               September 1974.
GEZ-4982A...................  General Electric      ML14093A215
                               Large Steam Turbine
                               Generator Quality
                               Control Program,
                               GEZ-4982A, Revision
                               1.2, February 7,
                               2006.

[[Page 25725]]

 
NEDO-11209-04A..............  GE Nuclear Energy,    ML14093A209
                               ``GE Nuclear Energy
                               Quality Assurance
                               Program
                               Description,''
                               Class I (Non-
                               proprietary), NEDO-
                               11209-04A, Revision
                               8, March 31, 1989.
NEDO-31960-A................  GE Nuclear Energy,    ML14093A212
                               ``BWR Owners' Group
                               Long-Term Stability
                               Solutions Licensing
                               Methodology,'' NEDO-
                               31960-A, November
                               1995.
NEDO-31960-A Supplement 1...  GE Nuclear Energy,    ML14093A211
                               ``BWR Owners' Group
                               Long-Term Stability
                               Solutions Licensing
                               Methodology,'' NEDO-
                               31960-A, Supplement
                               1, Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               November 1995.
NEDO-32465-A................  GE Nuclear Energy     ML14093A210
                               and BWR Owners'
                               Group, ``Reactor
                               Stability Detect
                               and Suppress
                               Solutions Licensing
                               Basis Methodology
                               for Reload
                               Applications,''
                               NEDO-32465-A, Class
                               I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               August 1996.
NEDO-33181..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100110150
                               Energy, ``NP-2010
                               COL Demonstration
                               Project Quality
                               Assurance
                               Program,'' NEDO-
                               33181, Revision 6,
                               August 2009.
NEDO-33219..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100350104
                               Energy, ``ESBWR
                               Human Factors
                               Engineering
                               Functional
                               Requirements
                               Analysis
                               Implementation
                               Plan,'' NEDO-33219,
                               Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 4,
                               February 2010.
NEDO-33260..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100110150
                               Energy, ``Quality
                               Assurance
                               Requirements for
                               Suppliers of
                               Equipment and
                               Services to the GEH
                               ESBWR Project,''
                               NEDO-33260,
                               Revision 5, April
                               2008.
NEDO-33262..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100340030
                               Energy, ``ESBWR
                               Human Factors
                               Engineering
                               Operating
                               Experience Review
                               Implementation
                               Plan,'' NEDO-33262,
                               Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 3, January
                               2010.
NEDO-33266..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100350167
                               Energy, ``ESBWR
                               Human Factors
                               Engineering
                               Staffing and
                               Qualifications
                               Implementation
                               Plan,'' NEDO-33266,
                               Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 3, January
                               2010.
NEDO-33267..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100330609
                               Energy, ``ESBWR
                               Human Factors
                               Engineering Human
                               Reliability
                               Analysis
                               Implementation
                               Plan,'' NEDO-33267,
                               Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 4, January
                               2010.
NEDO-33277..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100270770
                               Energy, ``ESBWR
                               Human Factors
                               Engineering Human
                               Performance
                               Monitoring
                               Implementation
                               Plan,'' NEDO-33277,
                               Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 4, January
                               2010.
NEDO-33278..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100270468
                               Energy, ``ESBWR
                               Human Factors
                               Engineering Design
                               Implementation
                               Plan,'' NEDO-33278,
                               Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 4, January
                               2010.
NEDO-33289..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100110150
                               Energy, ``ESBWR
                               Reliability
                               Assurance
                               Program,'' NEDO-
                               33289, Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 2,
                               September 2008.
NEDO-33337..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML091130628
                               Energy, ``ESBWR
                               Initial Core
                               Transient
                               Analyses,'' NEDO-
                               33337, Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 1, April
                               2009.
NEDO-33338..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML091380173
                               Energy, ``ESBWR
                               Feedwater
                               Temperature
                               Operating Domain
                               Transient and
                               Accident
                               Analysis,'' NEDO-
                               33338, Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 1, May
                               2009.
NEDO-33373-A................  GE-Hitachi Nuclear    ML102990226
                               Energy, ``Dynamic,    (part 1)
                               Load-Drop, and       ML102990228
                               Thermal-Hydraulic     (part 2)
                               Analyses for ESBWR
                               Fuel Racks,'' NEDO-
                               33373-A, Revision
                               5, Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               October 2010.
NEDO-33411..................  GE Hitachi Nuclear    ML100610417
                               Energy, ``Risk
                               Significance of
                               Structures, Systems
                               and Components for
                               the Design Phase of
                               the ESBWR,'' NEDO-
                               33411, Class I (Non-
                               proprietary),
                               Revision 2,
                               February 2010.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The NRC would obtain approval from the Director of the Office of 
the Federal Register for incorporation by reference of these documents 
before the NRC issues a final rule for the ESBWR design certification. 
Consistent with the Office of the Federal Register's requirements, the 
NRC would, in the final rule, correct paragraph III.A of appendix E to 
10 CFR part 52 by identifying in a table all of the publicly-available 
documents which are approved for incorporation by reference by the 
Director of the Office of the Federal Register. Therefore, these 
documents would be regarded as legally-binding requirements by virtue 
of publication in the Federal Register of the Director of the Office of 
the Federal Register's approval of incorporation by reference.
    The NRC is not requesting public comment in this supplemental 
proposed rule on the additional documents (i.e., those other than as 
described in Section I of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this 
document) that would be incorporated by reference in this rulemaking. 
The NRC will explain in a final ESBWR design certification rule why the 
changes to paragraph III.A, reflecting the Director of the Office of 
the Federal Register's approval for incorporation by reference of these 
20 additional documents, did not require a supplemental comment 
opportunity.

IV. Section-by-Section Analysis

    The following section-by-section analysis discusses two proposed 
revisions to the NRC's regulations that were not part of the proposed 
ESBWR design certification rule published on March 24, 2011 (76 FR 
16549), which address the changes related to the analysis methodology 
supporting the ESBWR steam dryer design that were made after the close 
of the public comment period for the proposed

[[Page 25726]]

ESBWR design certification rule. No section-by-section analysis is 
provided for the NRC's proposed clarification of its intent to treat 50 
referenced documents within the ESBWR DCD as requirements and matters 
resolved in subsequent licensing and enforcement actions for plants 
referencing the ESBWR design certification. This is because the NRC's 
proposed clarification does not require any change to the revision to 
the language of the proposed ESBWR design certification rule which was 
previously published for public comment, other than the revision of the 
ESBWR DCD from Revision 9 to Revision 10, which includes clarifying 
changes in Section 1.6 of the ESBWR DCD (described in Section III.B of 
the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document).

Appendix E, Paragraph III.A

    This paragraph identifies the version of the ESBWR DCD which is 
approved for incorporation by reference by the Director of the Office 
of the Federal Register, and therefore is considered to be a legally-
binding regulation by virtue of the rulemaking process. In this 
supplemental proposed rule, the NRC proposes to revise this paragraph 
to update the generic DCD revision number from Revision 9 to 10, 
provide the ADAMS accession number for Revision 10 of the DCD, and 
update the name and address of the GEH contact from whom a member of 
the public could obtain copies of the generic DCD. In addition, 
editorial changes were made in this paragraph to improve clarity.

Appendix E, Paragraph VIII.B.6.b

    This paragraph identifies Tier 2* information which retains that 
status throughout the duration of a license referencing the ESBWR 
design certification rule. In this supplemental proposed rule, the NRC 
proposes to add the ESBWR steam dryer analysis methodology to paragraph 
VIII.B.6.b.(8). As a result, this methodology would be designated as 
Tier 2* and that status would continue throughout the duration of a 
license referencing this appendix. A licensee referencing this appendix 
would be subject to the change controls as specified in paragraph 
VIII.B.6.b with respect to the ESBWR steam dryer analysis methodology.

V. Plain Writing

    The Plain Writing Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-274) requires Federal 
agencies to write documents in a clear, concise, and well-organized 
manner. The NRC has written this document to be consistent with the 
Plain Writing Act as well as the Presidential Memorandum, ``Plain 
Language in Government Writing,'' published June 10, 1998 (63 FR 
31883). The NRC requests comment on the supplemental proposed rule with 
respect to the clarity and effectiveness of the language used.

VI. Environmental Impact: Finding of No Significant Environmental 
Impact: Availability

    In the proposed ESBWR design certification rule published on March 
24, 2011, the NRC made available for public comment a draft 
Environmental Assessment (ADAMS Accession No. ML102220247) for the 
ESBWR design addressing various design alternatives to prevent and 
mitigate severe accidents. This supplemental proposed rule does not 
materially change the ESBWR design nor does it affect the NRC's prior 
evaluation of design alternatives to prevent and mitigate severe 
accidents. Therefore, the NRC has not prepared a supplemental 
environmental assessment for this supplemental proposed rule, nor is 
the NRC seeking additional public comment on the environmental 
assessment already prepared to support the proposed ESBWR design 
certification rule.

VII. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The proposed ESBWR design certification rule, published on March 
24, 2011, contains new or amended information collection requirements 
that are subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq) (PRA). The proposed rule was submitted to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval of the information 
collection requirements under clearance number 3150-0151. Public 
comments regarding the information collection requirements were 
requested in conjunction with the proposed rule.
    This supplemental proposed rule does not contain any new or amended 
information collection requirements not already identified in the March 
24, 2011, proposed rule and, therefore, is not subject to the 
requirements of the PRA. As a result, the supplemental proposed rule 
will not be submitted to OMB for approval. Further, the NRC is not 
seeking further public comment on the potential impact of the 
information collections contained in or the issues outlined in the PRA 
section of the ESBWR design certification proposed rule.

Public Protection Notification

    The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to 
respond to, a request for information or an information collection 
requirement unless the requesting document displays a currently valid 
OMB control number.

VIII. Regulatory Analysis

    The NRC has not prepared a regulatory analysis for this 
supplemental proposed rule. As discussed in the proposed ESBWR design 
certification rule, the NRC does not prepare regulatory analyses for 
design certification rulemakings. This supplemental proposed rule does 
not materially change the regulatory nature of this design 
certification rulemaking. Accordingly, the Commission concludes that 
preparation of a regulatory analysis for this supplemental proposed 
rule to certify the ESBWR standard plant design is neither required nor 
appropriate.

IX. Backfitting and Issue Finality

    The NRC has determined that this supplemental proposed rule does 
not constitute backfitting as defined in the backfit rule under 10 CFR 
50.109, nor is it inconsistent with any of the finality provisions for 
design certifications under 10 CFR 52.63. This design certification 
does not impose new or changed requirements on existing 10 CFR part 50 
licensees, nor does it impose new or changed requirements on existing 
design certification rules in appendices A through D to 10 CFR part 52. 
Therefore, a backfit analysis was not prepared for this supplemental 
proposed rule.

X. Procedures for Access to Sensitive Unclassified Non-Safeguards 
Information (Including Proprietary Information) and Safeguards 
Information for Preparation of Comments on the Supplemental Proposed 
ESBWR Design Certification Rule

    This section contains instructions regarding how interested persons 
who wish to comment on the proposed design certification, with respect 
to any of the 50 non-publicly available documents (including the three 
documents addressing the analysis methodology supporting the ESBWR 
steam dryer design), may request access to those documents in order to 
prepare their comments within the scope of this supplemental proposed 
rule. These documents, which are listed in Table 2 of Section I.A of 
the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document, contain SUNSI 
(including proprietary information \2\ and security-related

[[Page 25727]]

information \3\) and, in one case, SGI. Requirements for access to SGI 
are primarily set forth in 10 CFR parts 2 and 73. This document 
provides information specific to this supplemental proposed rule; 
however, nothing in this document is intended to conflict with the SGI 
regulations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ For purposes of this discussion, ``proprietary information'' 
constitutes trade secrets or commercial or financial information 
that are privileged or confidential, as those terms are used under 
the Freedom of Information Act and the NRC's implementing regulation 
at 10 CFR part 9.
    \3\ For purposes of this discussion, ``security-related 
information'' means information subject to non-disclosure under 10 
CFR 2.390(a)(7)(vi).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Interested persons who desire access to SUNSI information on the 
ESBWR design constituting proprietary information should first request 
access to that information from GEH, the design certification 
applicant. A request for access should be submitted to the NRC if the 
applicant does not either grant or deny access by the 10-day deadline 
described in the following section.
    One of the 50 non-publicly available documents in Table 2, NEDE-
33536P, contains proprietary information and security-related 
information. Another of the non-publicly available documents in Table 
2, NEDE-33391, contains proprietary information, security-related 
information, and SGI. If you need access to proprietary information in 
one or both of these two documents in order to develop comments within 
the scope of this supplemental proposed rule, then your request for 
access should first be submitted to GEH in accordance with the previous 
paragraph. By contrast, if you need access to the security-related 
information and/or SGI in one or both of those documents in order to 
provide comments within the scope of this supplemental proposed rule, 
then your request for access to the security-related information and/or 
SGI must be submitted to the NRC as described further in this section. 
Therefore, if you need access to proprietary information as well as 
security-related information and/or SGI in one or both of those 
documents, then you should pursue access to the information in separate 
requests submitted to GEH and the NRC.

Submitting a Request to the NRC for Access

    Within 10 days after publication of this supplemental proposed 
rule, any individual or entity who, in order to submit comments on the 
supplemental proposed ESBWR design certification rule, believes access 
to information in this rulemaking docket that the NRC has categorized 
as SUNSI or SGI is necessary may request access to such information. 
Requests for access to SUNSI or SGI submitted more than 10 days after 
publication of this document will not be considered absent a showing of 
good cause for the late filing explaining why the request could not 
have been filed earlier.
    The individual or entity requesting access to the information 
(hereinafter, the ``requester'') shall submit a letter requesting 
permission to access SUNSI and/or SGI to the Office of the Secretary, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Attention: Rulemakings and 
Adjudications Staff, Washington, DC 20555-0001. The expedited delivery 
or courier mail address is: Office of the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Attention: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, 
11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. The email address for 
the Office of the Secretary is [email protected]. The 
requester must send a copy of the request to the design certification 
applicant at the same time as the original transmission to the NRC 
using the same method of transmission. Requests to the applicant must 
be sent to Jerald G. Head, Senior Vice President, Regulatory Affairs, 
GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy, 3901 Castle Hayne Road, MC A-18, Wilmington, 
North Carolina 28401, email: [email protected]. For purposes of 
complying with this requirement, a ``request'' includes all the 
information required to be submitted to the NRC as set forth in this 
section.
    The request must include the following information:
    1. The name of this design certification, ESBWR Design 
Certification; the rulemaking identification number, RIN 3150-AI85; the 
rulemaking docket number, NRC-2010-0135; and a Federal Register 
citation to this supplemental proposed rule at the top of the first 
page of the request.
    2. The name, address, email or FAX number of the requester. If the 
requester is an entity, the name of the individual(s) to whom access is 
to be provided, then the address and email or FAX number for each 
individual, and a statement of the authority granted by the entity to 
each individual to review the information and to prepare comments on 
behalf of the entity must be provided. If the requester is relying upon 
another individual to evaluate the requested SUNSI and/or SGI and 
prepare comments, then the name, affiliation, address and email or FAX 
number for that individual must be provided.
    3.a. If the request is for SUNSI, the requester's need for the 
information in order to prepare meaningful comments on the supplemental 
proposed design certification must be demonstrated. Each of the 
following areas must be addressed with specificity:
    i. The specific issue or subject matter on which the requester 
wishes to comment;
    ii. An explanation why information which is publicly available, 
including the publicly-available versions of the application and design 
control document, and information on the NRC's docket for the design 
certification application is insufficient to provide the basis for 
developing meaningful comment on the supplemental proposed ESBWR design 
certification rule with respect to the issue or subject matter 
described in paragraph 3.a.i. of this section; and
    iii. Information demonstrating that the individual to whom access 
is to be provided has the technical competence (demonstrable knowledge, 
skill, experience, education, training, or certification) to understand 
and use (or evaluate) the requested information for a meaningful 
comment on the supplemental proposed ESBWR design certification rule 
with respect to the issue or subject matter described in paragraph 
3.a.i. of this section.
    b. If the request is for SUNSI constituting proprietary 
information, then a chronology and discussion of the requester's 
attempts to obtain the information from the design certification 
applicant, and the final communication from the requester to the 
applicant and the applicant's response with respect to the request for 
access to proprietary information must be submitted.
    4. Based on an evaluation of the information submitted under 
paragraph 3 of this section, the NRC staff will determine within 10 
days of receipt of the written access request whether the requester has 
established a legitimate need for SUNSI access.
    4.a. If the request is for SGI, then the requester's ``need to 
know'' the SGI as required by 10 CFR 73.2 and 10 CFR 73.22(b)(1) must 
be demonstrated. Consistent with the definition of ``need to know'' as 
stated in 10 CFR 73.2 and 10 CFR 73.22(b)(1), each of the following 
areas must be addressed with specificity:
    i. The specific issue or subject matter on which the requester 
wishes to comment;
    ii. An explanation why information which is publicly available, 
including the publicly-available versions of the application and design 
control document, and information on the NRC's docket for the design 
certification

[[Page 25728]]

application is insufficient to provide the basis for developing 
meaningful comment on the proposed design certification with respect to 
the issue or subject matter described in paragraph 4.a.i. of this 
section, and that the SGI requested is indispensable in order to 
develop meaningful comments; \4\ and
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \4\ Broad SGI requests under these procedures are unlikely to 
meet the standard for need to know. Furthermore, NRC staff redaction 
of information from requested documents before their release may be 
appropriate to comport with this requirement. The procedures in this 
notice of proposed rulemaking do not authorize unrestricted 
disclosure or less scrutiny of a requester's need to know than 
ordinarily would be applied in connection with either adjudicatory 
or non-adjudicatory access to SGI.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    iii. Information demonstrating that the individual to whom access 
is to be provided has the technical competence (demonstrable knowledge, 
skill, experience, education, training, or certification) to understand 
and use (or evaluate) the requested SGI, in order to develop meaningful 
comments on the proposed design certification with respect to the issue 
or subject matter described in paragraph 4.a.i. of this section.
    b. A completed Form SF-85, ``Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive 
Positions,'' must be submitted for each individual who would have 
access to SGI. The completed Form SF-85 will be used by the NRC's 
Office of Administration to conduct the background check required for 
access to SGI, as required by 10 CFR part 2, subpart G, and 10 CFR 
73.22(b)(2) to determine the requester's trustworthiness and 
reliability. For security reasons, Form SF-85 can only be submitted 
electronically through the electronic Questionnaire for Investigations 
Processing (e-QIP) Web site, a secure Web site that is owned and 
operated by the Office of Personnel Management. To obtain online access 
to the form, the requester should contact the NRC's Office of 
Administration at 301-415-7000.\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \5\ The requester will be asked to provide his or her full name, 
social security number, date and place of birth, telephone number, 
and email address. After providing this information, the requester 
usually should be able to obtain access to the online form within 
one business day.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    c. A completed Form FD-258 (fingerprint card), signed in original 
ink, and submitted under 10 CFR 73.57(d). Copies of Form FD-258 may be 
obtained by writing the Office of Information Services, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; by calling 301-415-
3710 or 301-492-7311; or by email to [email protected]. The 
fingerprint card will be used to satisfy the requirements of 10 CFR 
part 2, 10 CFR 73.22(b)(1), and Section 149 of the Atomic Energy Act of 
1954, as amended, which mandates that all persons with access to SGI 
must be fingerprinted for a Federal Bureau of Investigation 
identification and criminal history records check;
    d. A check or money order in the amount of $238.00 \6\ payable to 
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for each individual for whom the 
request for access has been submitted; and
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \6\ This fee is subject to change pursuant to the Office of 
Personnel Management's adjustable billing rates.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    e. If the requester or any individual who will have access to SGI 
believes they belong to one or more of the categories of individuals 
relieved from the criminal history records check and background check 
requirements, as stated in 10 CFR 73.59, the requester should also 
provide a statement specifically stating which relief the requester is 
invoking, and explaining the requester's basis (including supporting 
documentation) for believing that the relief is applicable. While 
processing the request, the NRC's Office of Administration, Personnel 
Security Branch, will make a final determination whether the stated 
relief applies. Alternatively, the requester may contact the Office of 
Administration for an evaluation of their status prior to submitting 
the request. Persons who are not subject to the background check are 
not required to complete the SF-85 or Form FD-258; however, all other 
requirements for access to SGI, including the need to know, are still 
applicable.
    Copies of documents and materials required by paragraphs 4.b., 
4.c., 4.d., and 4.e., as applicable, of this section must be sent to 
the following address: Office of Administration, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Personnel Security Branch, Mail Stop TWF-03B46M, 
Washington, DC 20555-0012.
    These documents and materials should not be included with the 
request letter to the Office of the Secretary, but the request letter 
should state that the forms and fees have been submitted as required.
    5. To avoid delays in processing requests for access to SGI, all 
forms should be reviewed for completeness and accuracy (including 
legibility) before submitting them to the NRC. The NRC will return 
incomplete or illegible packages to the sender without processing.
    6. Based on an evaluation of the information submitted under 
paragraphs 3.a. and 3.b., or 4.a., 4.b., 4.c., and 4.e. of this 
section, as applicable, the NRC staff will determine within 10 days of 
receipt of the written access request whether the requester has 
established a legitimate need for SUNSI access or need to know the SGI 
requested.
    7. For SUNSI access requests, if the NRC staff determines that the 
requester has established a legitimate need for access to SUNSI, the 
NRC staff will notify the requester in writing that access to SUNSI has 
been granted; provided, however, that if the SUNSI consists of 
proprietary information (i.e., trade secrets or confidential or 
financial information), the NRC staff must first notify the applicant 
of the NRC staff's determination to grant access to the requester not 
less than 10 days before informing the requester of the NRC staff's 
decision. If the applicant wishes to challenge the NRC staff's 
determination, it must follow the procedures in paragraph 12 of this 
section. The NRC staff will not provide the requester access to 
disputed proprietary information until the procedures in paragraph 12 
of this section are completed.
    The written notification to the requester will contain instructions 
on how the requester may obtain copies of the requested documents, and 
any other conditions that may apply to access to those documents. These 
conditions will include, but are not necessarily limited to, the 
signing of a protective order setting forth terms and conditions to 
prevent the unauthorized or inadvertent disclosure of SUNSI by each 
individual who will be granted access to SUNSI. Claims that the 
provisions of such a protective order have not been complied with may 
be filed by calling the NRC's toll-free safety hotline at 1-800-695-
7403. Please note: Calls to this number are not recorded between the 
hours of 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. However, calls received 
outside these hours are answered by the NRC's Incident Response 
Operations Center on a recorded line. Claims may also be filed via 
email sent to [email protected], or may be sent in writing to 
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ATTN: Timothy Frye, Mail Stop 
T7-D24, Washington, DC 20555-0001.
    8. For requests for access to SGI, if the NRC staff determines that 
the requester has established a need to know the SGI, the NRC's Office 
of Administration will then determine, based upon completion of the 
background check, whether the proposed recipient is trustworthy and 
reliable, as required for access to SGI by 10 CFR 73.22(b). If the 
NRC's Office of Administration determines that the individual or 
individuals are trustworthy and reliable, the NRC will promptly notify 
the requester in writing.

[[Page 25729]]

The notification will provide the names of approved individuals as well 
as the conditions under which the SGI will be provided. Those 
conditions will include, but are not necessarily limited to, the 
signing of a protective order by each individual who will be granted 
access to SGI. Claims that the provisions of such a protective order 
have not been complied with may be filed by calling the NRC's toll-free 
safety hotline at 800-695-7403. Please note: Calls to this number are 
not recorded between the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. 
However, calls received outside these hours are answered by the NRC's 
Incident Response Operations Center on a recorded line. Claims may also 
be filed via email sent to [email protected], or may be sent in 
writing to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ATTN: Timothy Frye, 
Mail Stop T7-D24, Washington, DC 20555-0001. Because SGI requires 
special handling, initial filings with the NRC should be free from such 
specific information. If necessary, the NRC will arrange an appropriate 
setting for transmitting SGI to the NRC.
    9. Release and Storage of SGI. Prior to providing SGI to the 
requester, the NRC staff will conduct (as necessary) an inspection to 
confirm that the recipient's information protection system is 
sufficient to satisfy the requirements of 10 CFR 73.22. Alternatively, 
recipients may opt to view SGI at an approved SGI storage location 
rather than establish their own SGI protection program to meet SGI 
protection requirements.
    10. Filing of Comments on the Supplemental Proposed ESBWR Design 
Certification Rule. Any comments in this rulemaking proceeding that are 
based upon the disclosed SUNSI or SGI information must be filed by the 
requester no later than 25 days after receipt of (or access to) that 
information, or the close of the public comment period, whichever is 
later. The commenter must comply with all NRC requirements regarding 
the submission of SUNSI and SGI to the NRC when submitting comments to 
the NRC (including marking and transmission requirements).
    11. Review of Denials of Access.
    a. If the request for access to SUNSI or SGI is denied by the NRC 
staff, the NRC staff shall promptly notify the requester in writing, 
briefly stating the reason or reasons for the denial.
    b. Before the NRC's Office of Administration makes an adverse 
determination regarding the trustworthiness and reliability of the 
proposed recipient(s) of SGI, the NRC's Office of Administration, as 
specified by 10 CFR 2.705(c)(3)(iii), must provide the proposed 
recipient(s) any records that were considered in the trustworthiness 
and reliability determination, including those required to be provided 
under 10 CFR 73.57(e)(1), so that the proposed recipient is provided an 
opportunity to correct or explain information.
    c. Appeals from a denial of access must be made to the NRC's 
Executive Director for Operations (EDO) under 10 CFR 9.29. The decision 
of the EDO constitutes final agency action under 10 CFR 9.29(d).
    12. Predisclosure Procedures for SUNSI Constituting Trade Secrets 
or Confidential Commercial or Financial Information. The NRC will 
follow the procedures in 10 CFR 9.28 if the NRC staff determines, under 
paragraph 7 of this section, that access to SUNSI constituting trade 
secrets or confidential commercial or financial information will be 
provided to the requester. However, any objection filed by the 
applicant under 10 CFR 9.28(b) must be filed within 15 days of the NRC 
staff notice in paragraph 7 of this section rather than the 30-day 
period provided for under that paragraph. In applying the provisions of 
10 CFR 9.28, the applicant for the design certification rule will be 
treated as the ``submitter.''

XI. Availability of Documents

    The documents related to the ESBWR steam dryer analysis methodology 
for which the NRC is seeking public comment are listed in Table 1, 
Section 1.A of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMTION section of this document. 
The documents which the NRC regards as requirements and are matters 
resolved under Paragraph VI, ISSUE RESOLUTION, of the ESBWR design 
certification rule, and for which the NRC is seeking public comment on 
the NRC's proposed clarification of its intent to treat these non-
public documents as requirements and matters resolved, are listed in 
Table 2, Section 1.A of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this 
document.
    The documents to be treated by the NRC as requirements in the final 
ESBWR design certification rule, but the NRC is not seeking public 
comment, are listed in Table 3, Section III.C of the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section of this document. Additional documents relevant to 
the proposed ESBWR design certification rule, for which an opportunity 
for public comment was provided in the proposed ESBWR design 
certification rule (76 FR 16549; March 24, 2011), are listed in Table 
4. These documents have not changed since the publication of the 
proposed ESBWR design certification rule for public comment. The NRC is 
not seeking public comment on these documents in this supplemental 
proposed rule; they are listed in Table 4 for the benefit of the 
reader.

 Table 4--Documents Relevant to the ESBWR Design Certification Rule, for Which an Opportunity for Public Comment
                                     Was Provided in the ESBWR Proposed Rule
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                   Publicly available     Non-publicly available
           Document No.                   Document title          ADAMS accession No.      ADAMS accession No.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                             Proposed Rule Documents
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SRM-SECY-11-0006..................  Staff Requirements          ML110670047              N/A
                                     Memorandum for SECY-11-
                                     0006, ``Staff
                                     Requirements--SECY-11-000
                                     6--Proposed Rule--
                                     Economic Simplified
                                     Boiling-Water Reactor
                                     Design Certification,''
                                     dated March 8, 2011.
SECY-11-0006......................  SECY-11-0006, ``Proposed    ML102220172              N/A
                                     Rule[dash]Economic
                                     Simplified Boiling-Water
                                     Reactor Design
                                     Certification,'' dated
                                     January 7, 2011.
Proposed Rule Federal Register      Federal Register Notice--   ML102220215              N/A
 Notice.                             Proposed Rule--ESBWR
                                     Design Certification.
Proposed Rule Environmental         Draft Environmental         ML102220247              N/A
 Assessment.                         Assessment--Proposed
                                     Rule--ESBWR Design
                                     Certification.

[[Page 25730]]

 
Final Safety Evaluation Report....  ESBWR Final Safety          ML103070392              N/A
                                     Evaluation Report, dated   (package)
                                     March 9, 2011.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

List of Subjects in 10 CFR Part 52

    Administrative practice and procedure, Antitrust, Backfitting, 
Combined license, Early site permit, Emergency planning, Fees, 
Inspection, Limited work authorization, Nuclear power plants and 
reactors, Probabilistic risk assessment, Prototype, Reactor siting 
criteria, Redress of site, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, 
Standard design, Standard design certification, Incorporation by 
reference.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble and under the authority of 
the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; the Energy Reorganization 
Act of 1974, as amended; and 5 U.S.C. 552 and 553, the NRC is proposing 
to adopt the following amendments to 10 CFR Part 52.

PART 52--LICENSES, CERTIFICATIONS, AND APPROVALS FOR NUCLEAR POWER 
PLANTS

0
1. The authority citation for 10 CFR part 52 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: Atomic Energy Act secs. 103, 104, 147, 149, 161, 181, 
182, 183, 185, 186, 189, 223, 234 (42 U.S.C. 2133, 2201, 2167, 2169, 
2232, 2233, 2235, 2236, 2239, 2282); Energy Reorganization Act secs. 
201, 202, 206, 211 (42 U.S.C. 5841, 5842, 5846, 5851); Government 
Paperwork Elimination Act sec. 1704 (44 U.S.C. 3504 note); Energy 
Policy Act of 2005, Pub. L. 109-58, 119 Stat. 594 (2005).

0
2. In appendix E to 10 CFR part 52, as proposed to be added March 24, 
2011 (76 FR 16549):
0
A. Revise paragraph III.A.
0
B. Add new paragraph VIII.B.6.b.(8).
    The revision and addition read as follows:

Appendix E to Part 52--Design Certification Rule for the ESBWR Design.

* * * * *
    III. Scope and Contents
    A. Incorporation by reference approval. All Tier 1, Tier 2 
(including the availability controls in Appendix 19ACM), and the 
generic TS in the ESBWR DCD, Revision 10, dated April 2014, ``ESBWR 
Design Control Document,'' are approved for incorporation by 
reference by the Director of the Office of the Federal Register 
under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. You may obtain copies of 
the generic DCD from Jerald G. Head, Senior Vice President, 
Regulatory Affairs, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy, 3901 Castle Hayne 
Road, MC A-18, Wilmington, NC 28401, telephone: 1-910-819-5692. You 
can view the generic DCD online in the NRC Library at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. In ADAMS, search under ADAMS 
Accession No. ML14104A929. If you do not have access to ADAMS or if 
you have problems accessing documents located in ADAMS, contact the 
NRC's Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 
1-301-415-3747, or by email at [email protected]. The generic DCD 
can also be viewed at the Federal rulemaking Web site, http://www.regulations.gov, by searching for documents filed under Docket 
ID NRC-2010-0135. A copy of the DCD is available for examination and 
copying at the NRC's PDR located at Room O-1F21, One White Flint 
North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. A copy also 
is available for examination at the NRC Library located at Two White 
Flint North, 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, 
telephone: 301-415-5610, email: [email protected]. All 
approved material is available for inspection at the National 
Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the 
availability of this material at NARA, call 1-202-741-6030 or go to 
http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibrlocations.html.
* * * * *
    VIII. * * *
    B. * * *
    6. * * *
    b. * * *
    (8) Steam dryer pressure load analysis methodology.
* * * * *

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of April, 2014.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Mark A. Satorius,
Executive Director for Operations.

[FR Doc. 2014-10246 Filed 5-5-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P