[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 41 (Friday, March 1, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7137-7138]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-03680]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 52-025 and 52-026; NRC-2008-0252]


Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.; Vogtle Electric 
Generating Plant, Units 3 and 4; Containment Pressure Analysis

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 departure from elements of the certification 
information of Tier 1 of the generic AP1000 design control document 
(DCD) and issuing License Amendment Nos. 147 and 146 to Combined 
Licenses (COL), NPF-91 and NPF-92. The COLs were issued to Southern 
Nuclear Operating Company, and Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe Power 
Corporation, MEAG Power SPVM, LLC, MEAG Power SPVJ, LLC, MEAG Power 
SPVP, LLC, and the City of Dalton, Georgia (collectively SNC); for 
construction and operation of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant 
(VEGP) Units 3 and 4, located in Burke County, Georgia. The amendment 
changes the VEGP Updated Final Safety Analysis Report by departing from 
the incorporated plant-specific DCD Tier 2 and Tier 2 * information and 
related changes to the VEGP Units 3 and 4, COL Appendix A and COL 
Appendix C (and corresponding plant-specific DCD Tier 1) to modify an 
administrative program to incorporate the results of various updated 
plant-specific containment integrity analyses. 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 exemptions and 
amendments are being issued concurrently.

DATES: The amendments were issued on November 7, 2018.

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 Website: Go http://www.regulations.gov 
and search for Docket ID NRC-2008-0252. Address questions about NRC 
dockets in Regulations.gov to Krupskaya Castellon; telephone: 301-287-
9221; 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 Document collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS 
Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's Public 
Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 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 it is mentioned in this document. The request for the 
amendment and exemption was designated License Amendment Request (LAR) 
17-043 and submitted by letter dated December 21, 2017, and 
supplemented by letter dated September 28, 2018, (ADAMS Accession Nos. 
ML18029A243 and ML18271A188).
     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: William (Billy) Gleaves, Office of New 
Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001; telephone: 301-415-5848; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction

    The NRC is granting an exemption from paragraph B of Section III, 
``Scope and Contents,'' of appendix D, ``Design Certification Rule for 
the AP1000,'' to part 52 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
(10 CFR) and issuing License Amendment Nos. 147 and 146 to COLs, NPF-91 
and NPF-92, to SNC.

[[Page 7138]]

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 
SNC to depart from Tier 1 information. With the requested license 
amendment, SNC proposed changes to plant-specific DCD Tier 2 and Tier 2 
* information and related changes to the VEGP Units 3 and 4, COL 
Appendix A and COL Appendix C (and corresponding plant-specific DCD 
Tier 1) to modify an administrative program to incorporate the results 
of various updated plant-specific containment integrity analyses.
    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 exemptions 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 amendments met all applicable regulatory 
criteria and were found to be acceptable as well. The combined safety 
evaluation is available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML18289A753.
    Identical exemption documents (except for referenced unit numbers 
and license numbers) were issued to SNC 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. ML18289A750 and ML18289A752, 
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. ML18289A745 and ML18289A748, 
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 VEGP Units 3 
and Unit 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 December 21, 2017, as supplemented September 
28, 2018, SNC requested from the Commission an exemption to allow 
departure from Tier 1 information in the certified DCD incorporated by 
reference in 10 CFR part 52, appendix D, ``Design Certification Rule 
for the AP1000 Design,'' as part of license amendment request (LAR) 17-
043, ``Containment Pressure Analysis.''
    For the reasons set forth in Section 3.2 of the NRC staff's Safety 
Evaluation, which can be found in ADAMS under Accession No. 
ML18289A753, 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, SNC is granted an exemption from the certified DCD 
Tier 1 information, with corresponding changes to Appendix C of the 
Facility Combined License, as described in SNC's request dated December 
21, 2017, as supplemented September 28, 2018. This exemption is related 
to, and necessary for the granting of License Amendment Nos. 147 [(Unit 
3) and 146 (Unit 4)], which is being issued concurrently with this 
exemption.
    3. As explained in the NRC staff's Safety Evaluation (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML18289A753), 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 December 21, 2017, as supplemented by letter dated 
September 28, 2018 (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML18029A243 and ML18271A188), 
SNC 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 of 
this Federal Register notice.
    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 COL, 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 
May 8, 2018 (83 FR 20866). 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 exemptions and issued the amendments that SNC 
requested by letter December 21, 2017, and supplemented by letter dated 
September 28, 2018 (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML18029A243 and ML18271A188).
    The exemptions and amendments were issued on November 7, 2018, as 
part of a combined package to SNC (ADAMS Package Accession No. 
ML18289A742).

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 26th day of February 2019.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jennifer L. Dixon-Herrity,
Chief, Licensing Branch 2, Division of Licensing, Siting, and 
Environmental Analysis, Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2019-03680 Filed 2-28-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P