[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 235 (Friday, December 6, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66936-66938]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-26389]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-334, 50-412, 72-1043, 50-346, 72-14, 50-440, and 72-69;
NRC-2019-0137]
In the Matter of FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company; Beaver
Valley Power Station, Unit Nos. 1 and 2, and Independent Spent Fuel
Storage Installation (ISFSI); Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station, Unit
No. 1 and ISFSI; and Perry Nuclear Power Plant, Unit No. 1 and ISFSI
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Direct and indirect transfer of licenses; order.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing the
Order approving the application filed by FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating
Company (FENOC), acting on behalf of itself and FirstEnergy Nuclear
Generation, LLC (FENGen), (together, the Applicants) on April 26, 2019,
as supplemented. The application seeks an NRC order consenting to the
direct and indirect transfer of licenses for Beaver Valley Power
Station, Unit Nos. 1 and 2; Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station, Unit No.
1; and Perry Nuclear Power PIant, Unit No. 1, and their respective
generally licensed independent spent fuel storage installations
(ISFSIs) (together, the Facilities). Specifically, the Applicants
requested a direct transfer of operating authority for the Facilities
from FENOC to an as-yet unnamed company, herein identified as OpCo; a
direct transfer of ownership of the Facilities from FENGen to an as-yet
unnamed company, herein identified as OwnerCo; and an indirect transfer
of ownership of the Facilities to an as-yet unnamed parent company,
herein identified as New HoldCo (FirstEnergy Corp. is currently the
ultimate parent company). The Applicants also requested the NRC's prior
written consent and issuance of conforming amendments to the licenses.
No physical changes to the Facilities or operational changes were
proposed in the application. The Order is effective upon issuance.
DATES: The Order was issued on December 2, 2019, and is effective for
one year.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2019-0137 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-2019-0137. Address
questions about NRC docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Jennifer Borges;
telephone: 301-287-9127; email: [email protected]. For technical
questions, contact the individuals 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]. For the convenience of the reader,
instructions about obtaining materials referenced in this document are
provided in the ``Availability of Documents'' section.
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: Bhalchandra K. Vaidya, telephone: 301-
[[Page 66937]]
415-3308, email: [email protected] or Joel S. Wiebe,
telephone: 301-415-6606, email: [email protected]. Both are staff of
the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington DC 20555-0001.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the Order is attached.
Availability of Documents
The documents identified in the following table are available to
interested persons through one or more of the following methods, as
indicated.
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Document ADAMS Accession No.
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Application for Order Consenting to Transfer ML19116A087
of Licenses and Conforming License
Amendments, dated April 26, 2019.
Supplemental Information Needed for Acceptance ML19151A531
of Requested Licensing Action RE: Application
for Order Consenting to Transfer of Licenses
and Conforming License Amendments (EPID-L-
2019-LLM-0000), dated May 31, 2019.
Response to Request for Additional Information ML19214A100
Regarding an Application for Order Consenting
to Transfer of Licenses and Conforming
License Amendments (EPID-L-2019-LLM-0000),
dated August 2, 2019.
Supplemental to Application for Order ML19241A462
Consenting to Transfer of Licenses and
Conforming License Amendments (EPID-L-201 9-
LLM-0000), dated August 29, 2019.
Supplemental to Application for Order ML19268A053
Consenting to Transfer of Licenses and
Conforming License Amendments (EPID-L-2019-
LLM-0000), dated September 25, 2019.
Supplemental to Application for Order ML19268B133
Consenting to Transfer of Licenses and
Conforming License Amendments (EPID-L-2019-
LLM-0000), dated September 25, 2019.
Supplemental to Application for Order ML19290D432
Consenting to Transfer of Licenses and
Conforming License Amendments (EPID-L-2019-
LLM-0000), dated October 17, 2019.
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Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of December 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--Order Approving Direct and Indirect Transfers of Control of
Licenses and Draft Conforming License Amendments
United States of America
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
In the Matter of Firstenergy Nuclear Operating Company,
Firstenergy Nuclear Generation, LLC; Beaver Valley Power Station,
Unit Nos. 1 and 2 and its generally licensed ISFSI, Docket Nos. 50-
334, 50-412, and 72-1043, License Nos. DPR-66 and NPF-73; Davis-
Besse Nuclear Power Station, Unit No. 1 and its generally licensed
ISFSI, Docket Nos. 50-346 and 72-14, License No. NPF-3; Perry
Nuclear Power Plant, Unit No. 1 and its generally licensed ISFSI,
Docket Nos. 50-440 and 72-69; License No. NPF-58
Order Approving Direct and Indirect Transfers of Control of Licenses
and Draft Conforming License Amendments
I.
FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company (FENOC) and FirstEnergy
Nuclear Generation, LLC (FENGen) (together, the Applicants) operate
and own, respectively, Beaver Valley Power Station (BVPS), Unit Nos.
1 and 2, and its generally licensed independent spent fuel storage
installation (ISFSI); Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station, Unit No. 1
(DBNPS) and its generally licensed ISFSI; and Perry Nuclear Power
PIant, Unit No. 1 (PNPP) and its generally licensed ISFSI (together,
the Facilities). Specifically, they are co-holders of:
(1) Renewed Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-66 and NPF-73
for BVPS, Units 1 and 2, respectively, located in Beaver County,
Pennsylvania;
(2) Renewed Facility Operating License No. NPF-3 for DBNPS,
located in Ottawa County, Ohio; and
(3) Facility Operating License No. NPF-58 for PNPP, located in
Lake County, Ohio.
II.
By application dated April 26, 2019 (Agencywide Documents Access
and Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML19116A087), as
supplemented by letters dated May 31, 2019; August 2, 2019; August
29, 2019; September 25, 2019 (two submissions); and October 17, 2019
(ADAMS Accession Nos. ML19151A531, ML19214A100, ML19241A462,
ML19268A053, ML19268B133, and ML19290D432, respectively), the
Applicants requested, pursuant to Section 184 of the Atomic Energy
Act of 1954, as amended, and Section 50.80, ``Transfer of
licenses,'' of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR),
that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission)
consent to the transfer of licenses. Specifically, the Applicants
requested a direct transfer of operating authority for the
Facilities from FENOC to an as-yet unnamed company, herein
identified as OpCo; a direct transfer of ownership of the Facilities
from FENGen to an as-yet unnamed company, herein identified as
OwnerCo; and an indirect transfer of ownership of the Facilities to
an as-yet unnamed parent company, herein identified as New HoldCo
(FirstEnergy Corp. is currently the ultimate parent company). The
Applicants also requested the NRC's prior written consent and
issuance of conforming amendments to the licenses pursuant to 10 CFR
50.80 and 10 CFR 50.90, ``Application for amendment of license,
construction permit, or early site permit.''
On March 31, 2018, FirstEnergy Solutions Corp. (FES), together
with FENOC, FENGen, and FES's other subsidiaries, filed voluntary
petitions for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of the United
States Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the
Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division (Bankruptcy Court). By
letter dated April 2, 2018 (ADAMS Accession No. ML18094A661), in
accordance with 10 CFR 50.54(cc)(1), FENOC notified the NRC of the
bankruptcy filing. The proposed direct and indirect license
transfers would support the emergence from bankruptcy of the
Applicants, along with FES and other affiliated companies that are
currently debtors in the bankruptcy process, pursuant to the Eighth
Amended Joint Plan of Reorganization (the Bankruptcy Reorganization
Plan) filed with the Bankruptcy Court on October 11, 2019, and the
Revised Eighth Amended Plan filed with the Bankruptcy Court on
October 14, 2019, and confirmed by the Bankruptcy Court on October
16, 2019, as noted in the Applicants' supplemental letter dated
October 17, 2019.
Under the Bankruptcy Reorganization Plan, at emergence from
bankruptcy, a new privately-held holding company, New HoldCo, will
be formed with shares initially held by certain current creditors of
one or more of FES, FENOC, FENGen, or FirstEnergy Generation, LLC
(FG) (a sister company of FENGen holding fossil fuel generation
assets) and management of the new holding company. Both OpCo and
OwnerCo will become wholly-owned subsidiaries of New HoldCo. New
HoldCo will also have ultimate ownership of FES's existing non-
nuclear generating assets as well as the retail and wholesale load-
serving business.
A notice of the application and opportunity to request a hearing
and to comment on the application was published in the Federal
Register (FR) on June 27, 2019 (84 FR 30775). In response, on July
17, 2019, the Environmental Law & Policy Center filed a hearing
request. The hearing request is currently pending before the
Commission. The NRC did not receive any comments on the application.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.80, no license for a production or
utilization facility, or any right thereunder, shall be transferred,
either voluntarily or involuntarily, directly or indirectly, through
transfer of control of the license to any person, unless the
Commission gives its consent in writing. Upon review of the
information in the application for license
[[Page 66938]]
transfer, as supplemented, and other information before the
Commission, the NRC staff has determined that OpCo and OwnerCo are
qualified to hold the licenses to the extent proposed to permit the
transfer of the licenses from FENOC and FENGen to OpCo and OwnerCo,
respectively, and that the transfers of the licenses, as described
in the application, are otherwise consistent with applicable
provisions of law, regulations, and orders issued by the NRC
pursuant thereto, subject to the conditions set forth below.
Upon review of the information in the application for conforming
amendments, as supplemented, the NRC staff has determined that:
(1) The application for conforming license amendments complies
with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of
1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's rules and
regulations set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I.
(2) The Facilities will operate in conformity with the
application, the provisions of the Act, and the rules and
regulations of the Commission.
(3) There is reasonable assurance that the activities authorized
by the amendments can be conducted without endangering the health
and safety of the public and that such activities will be conducted
in compliance with the Commission's regulations.
(4) The issuance of the amendments will not be inimical to the
common defense and security or to the health and safety of the
public.
(5) The issuance of the amendments is in accordance with 10 CFR
part 51 of the Commission's regulations and all applicable
requirements have been satisfied.
The findings set forth above are supported by an NRC staff
safety evaluation dated the same date as this Order, which is
available at ADAMS Accession No. ML19305B131 (non-proprietary).
III.
Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 161b, 161i, and 184 of the
Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 2201(b), 2201(i),
and 2234; and 10 CFR 50.80, 10 CFR 72.50, and 10 CFR 50.90, it is
hereby ordered that the application for license transfers, as
described herein, is approved for BVPS, Unit 1, BVPS, Unit 2, DBNPS,
and PNPP, and the respective ISFSIs, subject to the following
conditions.
1. OwnerCo and OpCo shall provide satisfactory documentary
evidence to the Director of the NRC Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation that, as of the date of the license transfer, the
licensees reflected in the amended licenses have obtained the
appropriate amount of insurance required of a licensee under 10 CFR
part 140 and 10 CFR 50.54(w).
2. On or by the closing date of the license transfer
transaction, the Applicants shall take all necessary steps to ensure
that the provisional trust agreement submitted on September 25,
2019, to address the shortfall identified for BVPS, Unit 1 is
implemented and maintained consistent with the safety evaluation
supporting this Order.
3. The NRC staff's approval of these license transfers is
subject to the Commission's authority to rescind, modify, or
condition the approved transfers based on the outcome of any post-
effectiveness hearing on the license transfer application.
It is further ordered that after receipt of all required
regulatory approvals of the proposed transfer actions, the
Applicants shall inform the Director of the Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation in writing of such receipt no later than 5
business days prior to the date of the closing of the transfer.
Should the proposed transfer not be completed within 1 year from the
date of this Order, this Order shall become null and void, provided,
however, upon written application and for good cause shown, such
date may be extended by order. The conditions of this Order may be
amended upon application by the Applicants and approval by the
Director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
It is further ordered that consistent with 10 CFR 2.1315(b), the
license amendments that make changes, as indicated in Enclosures 2
through 5 to the letter transmitting this Order, to reflect the
subject transfers, are approved. The amendments shall be issued and
made effective within 30 days of the date when the proposed transfer
actions are completed.
This Order is effective upon issuance.
For further details with respect to this Order, see the
application dated April 26, 2019, as supplemented by letters dated
May 31, 2019; August 2, 2019; August 29, 2019; September 25, 2019
(two submissions); and October 17, 2019, and the NRC safety
evaluation dated the same date as this Order, which are available
for public inspection at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR)
located at One White Flint North, Public File Area 01 F21, 11555
Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly
available documents created or received at the NRC are accessible
electronically through ADAMS in the NRC Library at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Persons who do not have access to
ADAMS or who encounter problems accessing the documents located in
ADAMS, should contact the NRC PDR reference staff by telephone at 1-
800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by email to [email protected].
Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 2nd day of December 2019.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
/RA/
Eric J. Benner,
Deputy Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2019-26389 Filed 12-5-19; 8:45 am]
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