[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 145 (Monday, July 29, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36626-36629]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-15961]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-293; NRC-2019-0130]


Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.; Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Exemption; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an 
exemption in response to a November 16, 2018, request from Entergy 
Nuclear Operations, Inc. (the licensee or Entergy). The issuance of the 
exemption would permit Entergy to use funds from the Pilgrim Nuclear 
Power Station (Pilgrim) decommissioning trust fund (DTF) for spent fuel 
management and site restoration activities.

DATES: The exemption was issued on July 22, 2019

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2019-0130 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 https://www.regulations.gov/ and search for Docket ID NRC-2019-0130. Address 
questions about NRC docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Jennifer Borges; 
telephone: 301-287-9127; 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 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 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: Scott P. Wall, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation; U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-2855; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the exemption is attached.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of July 2019.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Scott P. Wall,
Senior Project Manager, Plant Licensing Branch III, Division of 
Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

Attachment--Exemption.

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Docket No. 50-293

Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.

Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station

Exemption

I. Background.

    Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (Entergy, the licensee), is the 
holder of Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-35 for the Pilgrim 
Nuclear Power

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Station (Pilgrim). The facility is located in the town of Plymouth, 
Plymouth County, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
    By letter dated November 10, 2015 (Agencywide Documents Access and 
Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML15328A053), Entergy submitted 
a notification to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) 
indicating that it would permanently shut down Pilgrim no later than 
June 1, 2019. By letter dated June 10, 2019 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML19161A033), Entergy submitted to the NRC a certification in 
accordance with Sec.  50.82(a)(1) of Title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR), stating that Pilgrim permanently ceased power 
operations on May 31, 2019, and that as of June 9, 2019, all fuel had 
been permanently removed from the Pilgrim reactor vessel and placed in 
the spent fuel pool. Accordingly, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.82(a)(2), the 
Pilgrim renewed facility operating license no longer authorizes 
operation of the reactor or emplacement or retention of fuel in the 
reactor vessel.

II. Request/Action.

    By letter dated November 16, 2018 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML18320A037), Entergy submitted a request for exemption from 10 CFR 
50.82(a)(8)(i)(A). The exemption from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) would 
permit Entergy to make withdrawals from the Pilgrim Decommissioning 
Trust Fund (DTF) for spent fuel management and site restoration 
activities in accordance with the Pilgrim decommissioning cost 
estimate. By a separate letter dated November 16, 2018 (ADAMS Accession 
No. ML18320A036), Entergy submitted an update to the Pilgrim Spent Fuel 
Management Plan pursuant to 10 CFR 50.54(bb). By another separate 
letter dated November 16, 2018 (ADAMS Accession No. ML18320A034), as 
supplemented by letter dated January 9, 2019 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML19015A020), Entergy submitted the Post[dash]Shutdown Decommissioning 
Activities Report and site-specific decommissioning cost estimate for 
Pilgrim.
    The 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) requirement restricts the use of DTF 
withdrawals to expenses for legitimate decommissioning activities 
consistent with the definition of decommissioning that appears in 10 
CFR 50.2. The definition of ``decommission'' in 10 CFR 50.2 reads as 
follows:

to remove a facility or site safely from service and reduce residual 
radioactivity to a level that permits--
    (1) Release of the property for unrestricted use and termination of 
the license; or
    (2) Release of the property under restricted conditions and 
termination of the license.

    This definition does not include activities associated with spent 
fuel management and site restoration activities. Therefore, an 
exemption from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) is needed to allow Entergy to 
use funds from the DTF for spent fuel management and site restoration 
activities.
    Similar to 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A), provisions of 10 CFR 
50.75(h)(1)(iv) and (h)(2) dictate that with certain exceptions, 
disbursements from nuclear decommissioning trusts ``are restricted to 
decommissioning expenses.'' However, in accord with 10 CFR 50.75(h)(5), 
these provisions do not apply to ``any licensee that as of December 24, 
2003, has existing license conditions relating to decommissioning trust 
agreements, so long as the licensee does not elect to amend those 
license conditions.'' The operating license for Pilgrim included 
``existing license conditions relating to decommissioning trust 
agreements'' on December 24, 2003, and as such, Pilgrim is exempt from 
the provisions of paragraphs (h)(1) through (h)(3) of the regulations 
in 10 CFR 50.75, pursuant to the terms of 10 CFR 50.75(h)(5).

III. Discussion.

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the Commission may, upon application by 
any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from 
the requirements of 10 CFR part 50 (1) when the exemptions are 
authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to the public health 
and safety, and are consistent with the common defense and security; 
and (2) when any of the special circumstances listed in 10 CFR 
50.12(a)(2) are present. These special circumstances include, among 
other things:
    (a) Application of the regulation in the particular circumstances 
would not serve the underlying purpose of the rule or is not necessary 
to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule; and
    (b) Compliance would result in undue hardship or other costs that 
are significantly in excess of those contemplated when the regulation 
was adopted, or that are significantly in excess of those incurred by 
others similarly situated.

A. Authorized by Law

    The requested exemption from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) would allow 
Entergy to use a portion of the funds from the DTF for spent fuel 
management and site restoration activities at Pilgrim in the same 
manner that withdrawals are made under 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8) for 
decommissioning activities. As stated above, 10 CFR 50.12 allows the 
NRC to grant exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR part 50 when 
the exemptions are authorized by law. The NRC staff has determined, as 
explained below, that granting the licensee's proposed exemption will 
not result in a violation of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 
or the Commission's regulations. Therefore, the exemption is authorized 
by law.

B. No Undue Risk to Public Health and Safety

    The underlying purpose of 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) is to provide 
reasonable assurance that adequate funds will be available for the 
radiological decommissioning of power reactors and license termination. 
Based on the site-specific cost estimate and the cash flow analysis, 
use of a portion of the DTF for spent fuel management and site 
restoration activities will not adversely impact Entergy's ability to 
complete radiological decommissioning within 60 years and terminate the 
Pilgrim license. Furthermore, withdrawals from the DTF for spent fuel 
management and site restoration should not affect the sufficiency of 
funds in the DTF to accomplish radiological decontamination of the site 
because such withdrawals are still constrained by the provisions of 10 
CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(B)-(C) and are reviewable under the annual reporting 
requirements of 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(v)-(vii).
    Based on the above, there are no new accident precursors created by 
using the DTF in the proposed manner. Thus, the probability of 
postulated accidents is not increased. Also, based on the above, the 
consequences of postulated accidents are not increased. No changes are 
being made in the types or amounts of effluents that may be released 
offsite. There is no significant increase in occupational or public 
radiation exposure. Therefore, the requested exemption will not present 
an undue risk to the public health and safety.

C. Consistent with the Common Defense and Security

    The requested exemption would allow Entergy to use funds from the 
Pilgrim DTF for spent fuel management and site restoration activities 
at Pilgrim. Spent fuel management under 10 CFR 50.54(bb) is an integral 
part of the planned Entergy decommissioning and license termination 
process and will not

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adversely affect Entergy's ability to physically secure the site or 
protect special nuclear material. This change to enable the use of a 
portion of the funds from the DTF for spent fuel management and site 
restoration activities has no relation to security issues. Therefore, 
the common defense and security is not impacted by the requested 
exemption.

D. Special Circumstances

    Special circumstances, in accordance with 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii), 
are present whenever application of the regulation in the particular 
circumstances is not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the 
regulation.
    The underlying purpose of 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A), which restricts 
withdrawals from DTFs to expenses for radiological decommissioning 
activities, is to provide reasonable assurance that adequate funds will 
be available for radiological decommissioning of power reactors and 
license termination. Strict application of this requirement would 
prohibit the withdrawal of funds from the Pilgrim DTF for activities 
other than radiological decommissioning activities at Pilgrim, such as 
for spent fuel management and site restoration activities, until final 
radiological decommissioning at Pilgrim has been completed.
    The total Pilgrim DTF balance as of October 31, 2018, was 
approximately $1,051,722,000. The Entergy analysis projects the total 
radiological decommissioning cost of Pilgrim to be approximately 
$1,187,994,000 (2018 dollars). As required by 10 CFR 50.54(bb), Entergy 
estimated the costs associated with the long-term spent fuel management 
at Pilgrim to be $420.3 million in 2018 dollars.
    The NRC staff performed an independent cash flow analysis of the 
DTF over the 60-year SAFSTOR period (assuming an annual real rate of 
return of 2 percent, as allowed by 10 CFR 50.75(e)(1)(ii)) and 
determined the projected earnings of the DTF. The NRC staff confirmed 
that the current funds in the DTF and projected earnings provide 
reasonable assurance of adequate funding to complete all NRC-required 
radiological decommissioning activities, and also to pay for spent fuel 
management and site restoration activities. Therefore, the NRC staff 
finds that Entergy has provided reasonable assurance that adequate 
funds will be available for the radiological decommissioning of 
Pilgrim, even with the disbursement of funds from the DTF for spent 
fuel management and site restoration activities. Consequently, the NRC 
staff concludes that application of the 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) 
requirement that funds from the DTF only be used for radiological 
decommissioning activities and not for spent fuel management and site 
restoration activities is not necessary to achieve the underlying 
purpose of the rule; thus, special circumstances are present supporting 
approval of the exemption request.
    By granting the exemption to 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A), the NRC 
staff considers that withdrawals consistent with the licensee's 
submittal dated November 16, 2018, are authorized. As stated 
previously, the NRC staff has determined that there are sufficient 
funds in the DTF to complete radiological decommissioning activities as 
well as to conduct spent fuel management and site restoration 
activities consistent with the Post[dash]Shutdown Decommissioning 
Activities Report, decommissioning cost estimate, Spent Fuel Management 
Plan, and the November 16, 2018, exemption request. Pursuant to the 
requirements in 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(v) and (vii), licensees are required 
to monitor and annually report to the NRC the status of the DTF and the 
licensee's funding for managing spent fuel. These reports provide the 
NRC staff with awareness of, and the ability to take action on, any 
actual or potential funding deficiencies. Additionally, 10 CFR 
50.82(a)(8)(vi) requires that the annual financial assurance status 
report must include additional financial assurance to cover the 
estimated cost of completion if the sum of the balance of any remaining 
decommissioning funds, plus earnings on such funds calculated at not 
greater than a 2 percent real rate of return, together with the amount 
provided by other financial assurance methods being relied upon, does 
not cover the estimated cost to complete the decommissioning. The 
requested exemption would not allow the withdrawal of funds from the 
DTF for any other purpose that is not currently authorized in the 
regulations without prior notification to the NRC.
    Special circumstances, in accordance with 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(iii), 
are present whenever compliance would result in undue hardship or other 
costs that are significantly in excess of those contemplated when the 
regulation was adopted, or that are significantly in excess of those 
incurred by others similarly situated. The licensee states that the DTF 
contains funds in excess of the estimated costs of radiological 
decommissioning and that these excess funds are needed for spent fuel 
management and site restoration activities. The NRC does not preclude 
the use of funds from the decommissioning trust in excess of those 
needed for radiological decommissioning for other purposes, such as 
spent fuel management or site restoration activities.
    The NRC has stated that funding for spent fuel management and site 
restoration activities may be commingled in the DTF, provided that the 
licensee is able to identify and account for the radiological 
decommissioning funds separately from the funds set aside for spent 
fuel management and site restoration activities (see NRC Regulatory 
Issue Summary 2001-07, Rev. 1, ``10 CFR 50.75 Reporting and 
Recordkeeping for Decommissioning Planning,'' dated January 8, 2009 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML083440158), and Regulatory Guide 1.184, Revision 
1, ``Decommissioning of Nuclear Power Reactors,'' dated October 2013 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML13144A840)). Preventing access to those excess 
funds in the DTF because spent fuel management and site restoration 
activities are not associated with radiological decommissioning would 
create an unnecessary financial burden without any corresponding safety 
benefit. The adequacy of the DTF to cover the cost of activities 
associated with spent fuel management and site restoration, in addition 
to radiological decommissioning, is supported by the site-specific 
decommissioning cost analysis. If the licensee cannot use its DTF for 
spent fuel management and site restoration activities, it would need to 
obtain additional funding that would not be recoverable from the DTF, 
or the licensee would have to modify its decommissioning approach and 
methods. The NRC staff concludes that either outcome would impose an 
unnecessary and undue burden significantly in excess of that 
contemplated when 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) was adopted.
    The underlying purposes of 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) would be 
achieved by allowing Entergy to use a portion of the Pilgrim DTF for 
spent fuel management and site restoration activities, and compliance 
with the regulation would result in an undue hardship or other costs 
that are significantly in excess of those contemplated when the 
regulations were adopted. Thus, the special circumstances required by 
10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii) and 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(iii) exist and support 
the approval of the requested exemption.

E. Environmental Considerations

    In accordance with 10 CFR 51.31(a), the Commission has determined 
that the granting of the exemption will not have a significant effect 
on the quality of the

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human environment (see Environmental Assessment and Finding of No 
Significant Impact published in the Federal Register on July 1, 2019 
(84 FR 31356).

IV. Conclusions.

    In consideration of the above, the NRC staff finds that the 
proposed exemption confirms the adequacy of funding in the Pilgrim DTF, 
considering growth, to complete radiological decommissioning of the 
site and to terminate the license and also to cover estimated spent 
fuel management and site restoration activities.
    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
50.12(a), the exemption is authorized by law, will not present an undue 
risk to the public health and safety, and is consistent with the common 
defense and security. Also, special circumstances are present. 
Therefore, the Commission hereby grants Entergy exemption from the 10 
CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) requirement to allow use of a portion of the 
funds from the Pilgrim DTF for spent fuel management and site 
restoration activities in accordance with the Pilgrim 
Post[dash]Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report and 
decommissioning cost estimate, dated November 16, 2018, as supplemented 
by letter dated January 9, 2019.
    This exemption is effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 22nd day of July, 2019.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Craig G. Erlanger,

Director, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation.

[FR Doc. 2019-15961 Filed 7-26-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P