[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 49 (Wednesday, March 13, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9146-9148]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-04601]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 52-027 and 52-028; NRC-2008-0441]


South Carolina Electric & Gas Company; Virgil C. Summer Nuclear 
Station, Units 2 and 3

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Termination of licenses.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is terminating 
the Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Station (VCSNS), Units 2 and 3, Combined 
Licenses (COLs) designated as NPF-93, and NPF-94, and their included 
licenses to manufacture, produce, transfer, receive, acquire, own, 
possess, or use byproduct material. By letter dated December 27, 2017, 
the South Carolina Electric & Gas Company (SCE&G) requested that the 
NRC terminate the VCSNS COLs. Although construction was initiated for 
VCSNS Units 2 and 3, nuclear materials were never possessed under these 
licenses. Consequently, the VCSNS site is approved for unrestricted 
use.

DATES: The letter terminating the VCSNS COLs was issued on March 6, 
2019.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2008-0441 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 to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2008-0441. Address 
questions about NRC Docket IDs 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 Documents collection at http://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 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 it is mentioned in this document.
     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. Background

    The NRC issued COLs NPF-93, and NPF-94, to SCE&G for VCSNS Units 2 
and 3 on March 30, 2012 (ADAMS Package Accession Nos. ML113190371 and 
ML113190715, respectively). Since issuance of the licenses, SCE&G has 
procured construction materials and has begun construction on the site. 
By letter dated August 17, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. ML17229B487), the 
NRC received formal notification from SCE&G that VCSNS Units 2 and 3 
construction had been stopped and the COLs placed in terminated status, 
consistent with the Commission's policy statement on deferred and 
terminated plants. In that letter, SCE&G indicated that it would 
follow-up with a request to disposition its COLs. SCE&G's stoppage of 
construction activities at VCSNS Units 2 and 3, on July 31, 2017, 
coincided with the departure of most construction workers, support 
personnel, and managers.
    By letter dated December 27, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML17361A088), SCE&G informed the NRC that it is requesting withdrawal 
of the COLs, and the included title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR) parts 30, 40, and 70 licenses for VCSNS Units 2 
and 3. Co-licensee Santee Cooper responded to SCE&G's request for

[[Page 9147]]

withdrawal of the VCSNS Units 2 and 3 COLs in its January 8, 2018, 
letter to the NRC (ADAMS Accession No. ML18010A068). Santee Cooper 
requested that NRC not take action on SCE&G's COL withdrawal request 
for 180 days, or such time as might be necessary for Santee Cooper to 
evaluate whether to seek transfer of the VCSNS Units 2 and 3 COLs. 
Santee Cooper also raised questions regarding the appropriate 
regulation for COL withdrawal and the rights of co-licensees in a 
withdrawal action.
    By letter dated January 25, 2018, SCE&G requested an order 
approving the indirect transfer and control of operating licenses and 
combined licenses for the VCSNS, Units 1, 2, 3, and the associated 
Independent Spent Fuel Storage Facility due to the proposed merger 
between SCANA Corporation and Sedona Corporation, a South Carolina 
corporation and subsidiary of Dominion Energy. In that letter (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML18025C035) SCE&G noted that it had previously requested 
NRC withdraw the combined licenses for VCSNS, Units 2 and 3, and that 
it sought the indirect transfer of those COLs to the merged corporation 
if the merger occurred before the COL termination was approved by NRC. 
The merger between Dominion Energy, Inc., and SCANA Corporation was 
approved by NRC on August 30, 2018 (ADAMS Accession No. ML18355A996). 
SCE&G's obligations as a co-owner and operator under the licenses for 
VCSNS, Units 1, 2, 3, and the associated Independent Spent Fuel Storage 
Facility did not change under the merger.
    By letter dated July 23, 2018, Santee Cooper informed the NRC that 
it expected the Santee Cooper Board of Directors to resolve the issue 
of termination of the VCSNS Units 2 and 3 COL on August 20, 2018 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML18206A230). The letter further stated that the senior 
Santee Cooper management would recommend that the VCSNS Units 2 and 3 
COLs be terminated. By letter dated January 29, 2019 (ADAMS Accession 
No. ML19038A225), Santee Cooper informed the NRC that Santee Cooper's 
Board of Directors consented to SCE&G's request to terminate the VCSNS 
COLs.

II. License Termination

    Termination of COLs issued under 10 CFR part 52 is controlled by 10 
CFR 52.110, ``Termination of license.'' As discussed in ``Current NRC 
Staff Views on Applying the 1987 Policy Statement on Deferred Plants'' 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML18065B257), the NRC staff does not apply the 
requirements for termination in 10 CFR 52.110 to plants that have not 
begun operation. Requirements for termination of the included licenses 
under sections 30.36, 40.42, and 70.38 of 10 CFR include the submission 
of NRC Form 314, or equivalent information. The staff finds that SCE&G 
met these requirements through the information provided as part of its 
December 27, 2017, submission.
    Along with their December 27, 2017, request to terminate the COLs, 
SCE&G provided a site redress plan to address the environmental impacts 
associated with the structures and materials remaining from the partial 
construction of the site. SCE&G estimates that less than 40 percent of 
the construction at the site was completed. Most of the environmental 
impacts outlined in the redress plan include the removal of equipment 
and structures associated with the halted construction of VCSNS Units 2 
and 3. SCE&G stated that materials and structures removed would be 
above grade or in areas that have previously experienced substantial 
ground disturbance for the original construction of the plant. Some 
structures and equipment would be abandoned in place. Redress would 
also include the removal of oil and lubricants associated with the 
construction activities in accordance with all applicable federal, 
state, or local laws and regulations. SCE&G stated that it would 
conduct periodic site inspections to ensure that none of the equipment 
or materials are causing environmental, health, or safety problems. 
SCE&G also stated that it would continue to maintain the site in 
compliance with all applicable environmental regulations and permit 
conditions after the termination of the COLs.
    As no nuclear materials have been possessed under these licenses, 
there is no need for a site radiation survey to be conducted under 10 
CFR parts 30, 40, or 70. With no radiological contamination associated 
with the licenses, the VCSNS site may be released for unrestricted use 
pursuant to 10 CFR 20.1402.

III. Environmental Review

    SCE&G seeks to terminate the VCSNS Units 2 and 3 COLs, for which 
nuclear material under these licenses was never brought onsite. 
Terminating a COL is a licensing action that would ordinarily require 
an environmental assessment under 10 CFR 51.21, unless a categorical 
exclusion in 10 CFR 51.22(c) applies and no special circumstances under 
10 CFR 51.22(b) exist. Actions listed in 10 CFR 51.22(c) were 
previously found by the Commission to be part of a category of actions 
that ``does not individually or cumulatively have a significant effect 
on the human environment.''
    The categorical exclusion identified in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(20) 
includes:
    Decommissioning of sites where licensed operations have been 
limited to the use of--
    (i) Small quantities of short-lived radioactive materials;
    (ii) Radioactive materials in sealed sources, provided there is no 
evidence of leakage of radioactive material from these sealed sources; 
or
    (iii) Radioactive materials in such a manner that a decommissioning 
plan is not required by 10 CFR 30.36(g)(1), 40.42(g)(1), or 70.38(g)(1) 
and the NRC has determined that the facility meets the radiological 
criteria for unrestricted use in 10 CFR 20.1402 without further 
remediation or analysis.
    This categorical exclusion captures decommissioning activities at 
sites where contamination from radioactive material is determined to be 
nominal. In the case of VCSNS Units 2 and 3, no associated radiological 
contamination exists because nuclear material under these licenses was 
never brought on site. As a result, a decommissioning plan for this 
site is not required by 10 CFR 30.36(g)(1), 40.42(g)(1), or 
70.38(g)(1), and the site meets the radiological criteria for 
unrestricted use in 10 CFR 20.1402 without further remediation or 
analysis. Further, no special circumstances under 10 CFR 51.22(b) 
apply. The factors listed in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(20) are consistent with 
the circumstances here because there is no radiological impact 
associated with the VCSNS COLs, which is even less than the nominal 
impacts anticipated by the categorical exclusion. Therefore, 
application of the categorical exclusion to the termination of the 
VCSNS COLs is warranted. Consequently, in accordance with 10 CFR 51.21, 
an environmental assessment is not required for the termination of COLs 
NPF-93 and NPF-94, and their included 10 CFR parts 30, 40, and 70 
licenses.

IV. Conclusion

    As discussed above, the Commission has determined that the VCSNS 
COL termination request meets the categorical exclusion criteria set 
forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(20) and that the unrestricted use criteria 
pursuant to 10 CFR 20.1402 are met. The Commission grants SCE&G's 
request to terminate the COLs designated as NPF-93 and NPF-94, and 
their included 10 CFR parts 30, 40, and 70 licenses for VCSNS Units 2 
and 3. This license termination was

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effective upon SCE&G's receipt of NRC's termination letter, dated March 
6, 2019 (ADAMS Accession No. ML18198A299).

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 8th day of March 2019.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Chandulal P. Patel,
Acting Chief, Licensing Branch 2, Division of Licensing, Siting, and 
Environmental Analysis, Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2019-04601 Filed 3-12-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P