[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 42 (Thursday, March 3, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11295-11296]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-04754]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 52-025 and 52-026; NRC-2008-0252]
Vogtle Electric Generating Station, Units 3 and 4; Southern
Nuclear Operating Company; Addition of Instruments to Design
Reliability Assurance Program (D-RAP)
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Exemption and combined license amendment; issuance.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is granting an
exemption to allow a departure from the certification information of
Tier 1 of the generic design control document (DCD) and is issuing
License Amendment No. 43 to Combined Licenses (COLs), NPF-91 and NPF-
92. The COLs were issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.,
(SNC), Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, MEAG Power
SPVM, LLC., MEAG Power SPVJ, LLC., MEAG Power SPVP, LLC., and the City
of Dalton, Georgia (together ``the licensee''); for construction and
operation of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant (VEGP) Units 3 and 4,
located in Burke County, Georgia.
The granting of the exemption allows the changes to Tier 1
information requested in the amendment. Because the acceptability of
the exemption was determined in part by the acceptability of the
amendment, the exemption and amendment are being issued concurrently.
DATES: March 3, 2016.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2008-0252 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You
may obtain publicly-available information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2008-0252. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of
this document.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the
ADAMS Public Documents collection 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 (if it is available
in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is referenced. The
request for the amendment and exemption was submitted by letter dated
October 7, 2014 (ADAMS Accession No. ML14280A391) and supplemented by
letter dated September 4, 2015 (ADAMS Accession No. ML15247A515).
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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ruth C. Reyes, Office of New Reactors,
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001;
telephone: 301-415-3249; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 11296]]
I. Introduction
The NRC is granting an exemption from Tier 1 information in the
certified DCD incorporated by reference in part 52 of title 10 of the
Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), appendix D, ``Design
Certification Rule for the AP1000 Design,'' and issuing License
Amendment No. 43 to COLs, NPF-91 and NPF-92, to the licensee. The
exemption is required by Paragraph A.4 of Section VIII, ``Processes for
Changes and Departures,'' appendix D to 10 CFR part 52 to allow the
licensee to depart from Tier 1 information. With the requested
amendment, the licensee sought a change to the feedwater controller
program so it will respond as required to plant transients while
minimizing the potential for actuation when it is not desirable.
Part of the justification for granting the exemption was provided
by the review of the amendment. Because the exemption is necessary in
order to issue the requested license amendment, the NRC granted the
exemption and issued the amendment concurrently, rather than in
sequence. This included issuing a combined safety evaluation containing
the NRC staff's review of both the exemption request and the license
amendment. The exemption met all applicable regulatory criteria set
forth in 10 CFR 50.12, 10 CFR 52.7, and Section VIII.A.4 of appendix D
to 10 CFR part 52. The license amendment was found to be acceptable as
well. The combined safety evaluation is available in ADAMS under
Accession No. ML15258A559.
Identical exemption documents (except for referenced unit numbers
and license numbers) were issued to the licensee for VEGP Units 3 and 4
(COLs NPF-91 and NPF-92). The exemption documents for VEGP Units 3 and
4 can be found in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML15258A536 and
ML15258A550, respectively. The exemption is reproduced (with the
exception of abbreviated titles and additional citations) in Section II
of this document. The amendment documents for COLs NPF-91 and NPF-92
are available in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML15258A479 and
ML15258A530, respectively. A summary of the amendment documents is
provided in Section III of this document.
II. Exemption
Reproduced below is the exemption document issued to Vogtle Units 3
and 4. It makes reference to the combined safety evaluation that
provides the reasoning for the findings made by the NRC (and listed
under Item 1) in order to grant the exemption:
1. In a letter dated October 7, 2014, and supplemented by letter
dated September 4, 2015, the licensee requested from the Commission an
exemption to allow departures from Tier 1 information in the certified
DCD incorporated by reference in 10 CFR part 52, appendix D as part of
license amendment request 14-006, ``Addition of Instruments to Design
Reliability Assurance Program (D-RAP).''
For the reasons set forth in Section 3.1 of the NRC staff's Safety
Evaluation that supports this license amendment, which can be found at
ADAMS Accession No. ML15258A559, the Commission finds that:
A. The exemption is authorized by law;
B. the exemption presents no undue risk to public health and
safety;
C. the exemption is consistent with the common defense and
security;
D. special circumstances are present in that the application of the
rule in this circumstance is not necessary to serve the underlying
purpose of the rule;
E. the special circumstances outweigh any decrease in safety that
may result from the reduction in standardization caused by the
exemption; and
F. the exemption will not result in a significant decrease in the
level of safety otherwise provided by the design.
2. Accordingly, the licensee is granted an exemption from the
certified DCD Tier 1, as described in the licensee's request dated
October 7, 2014, and supplemented by letter dated September 4, 2015.
This exemption is related to, and necessary for, the granting of
License Amendment No. 43, which is being issued concurrently with this
exemption.
3. As explained in Section 5.0 of the NRC staff's Safety Evaluation
that supports this license amendment (ADAMS Accession No. ML15258A559),
this exemption meets the eligibility criteria for categorical exclusion
set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9). Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR
51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment
needs to be prepared in connection with the issuance of the exemption.
4. This exemption is effective as of the date of its issuance.
III. License Amendment Request
By letter dated October 7, 2014, and supplemented by letter dated
September 4, 2015, the licensee requested that the NRC amend the COLs
for VEGP, Units 3 and 4, COLs NPF-91 and NPF-92. The proposed amendment
is described in Section I, above.
The Commission has determined for these amendments that the
application complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic
Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's rules
and regulations. The Commission has made appropriate findings as
required by the Act and the Commission's rules and regulations in 10
CFR Chapter I, which are set forth in the license amendment.
A notice of consideration of issuance of amendment to facility
operating license or combined license, as applicable, proposed no
significant hazards consideration determination, and opportunity for a
hearing in connection with these actions, was published in the Federal
Register on July 7, 2015 (80 FR 38761). The September 4, 2015,
supplement had no effect on the no significant hazards consideration
determination, and no comments were received during the 30-day comment
period.
The Commission has determined that these amendments satisfy the
criteria for categorical exclusion in accordance with 10 CFR 51.22.
Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact
statement or environmental assessment need be prepared for these
amendments.
IV. Conclusion
Using the reasons set forth in the combined safety evaluation, the
staff granted the exemption and issued the amendment that the licensee
requested on October 7, 2014, as supplemented by letter dated September
4, 2015. The exemption and amendment were issued on January 12, 2016 as
part of a combined package to the licensee (ADAMS Accession No.
ML15258A465).
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 25th day of February 2016.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John McKirgan,
Chief, Licensing Branch 4, Division of New Reactor Licensing, Office of
New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2016-04754 Filed 3-2-16; 8:45 am]
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