[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 161 (Wednesday, August 19, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51072-51075]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-18078]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-331; NRC-2020-0189]
NextEra Energy Duane Arnold, LLC; Duane Arnold Energy Center
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Exemption; issuance.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an
exemption in response to a February 25, 2020, as supplemented by letter
dated May 29, 2020, request from NextEra Energy Duane Arnold, LLC
(NEDA, the licensee). The issuance of the exemption would permit NEDA
to use funds from the Duane Arnold Energy Center (DAEC) decommissioning
trust fund (DTF) for spent fuel management and site restoration
activities and without prior notification of the NRC.
DATES: The exemption was issued on August 12, 2020.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2020-0189 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-2020-0189. 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 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.
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 August 13, 2020.
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. 50-331
NextEra Energy Duane Arnold, LLC, Duane Arnold Energy Center, Exemption
I. Background
Duane Arnold Energy Center (DAEC) is a single boiling-water reactor
located in Linn County, Iowa. Under Renewed Facility Operating License
No. DPR-49, DAEC is owned by NextEra Energy Duane Arnold, LLC (NEDA,
the licensee) (70%), Central Iowa Power Cooperative (20%), and Corn
Belt Power Cooperative (10%) and is operated by NEDA. This license is
subject to the rules, regulations, and orders of the U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission).
By letter dated January 18, 2019 (Agencywide Documents Access and
Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML19023A196), NEDA submitted to
the NRC a certification in accordance with Section 50.82(a)(1)(i) of
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), stating its
determination to permanently cease power operations at DAEC in the
fourth quarter of 2020. By letter dated March 2, 2020 (ADAMS Accession
No. ML20062E489), NEDA updated this certification, stating that it
plans to permanently cease power operations at DAEC on October 30,
2020. By letter dated April 2, 2020 (ADAMS Accession No. ML20094F603),
NEDA submitted to the NRC a Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities
Report (PSDAR) and site-specific Decommissioning Cost Estimate (DCE)
for DAEC in accordance with 10 CFR 50.82(a)(4)(i).
II. Request/Action
By letter dated February 25, 2020 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML20056E054), as supplemented by letter dated May 29, 2020 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML20153A371), NEDA submitted to the NRC a request for
exemption from specific requirements of 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) and 10
CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv). The exemption from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) and 10
CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) would permit NEDA to make withdrawals from the DAEC
Decommissioning Trust Fund (DTF) for spent fuel management and site
restoration activities in accordance with the DAEC DCE. The exemption
from 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) would also permit NEDA to make these
withdrawals without prior notification of the NRC, similar to
withdrawals for decommissioning activities made in accordance with 10
CFR 50.82(a)(8).
As part of its exemption request, NEDA provided Table 1, ``Annual
SAFSTOR Decommissioning Cost Cash Flow for Duane Arnold Energy
Center,'' that shows the annual DTF cash flow for DAEC while conducting
SAFSTOR decommissioning (i.e., deferred dismantling). Table 1 contains
the projected withdrawals from the DTF needed to cover the estimated
costs of radiological decommissioning, spent fuel management, and site
restoration activities as projected as of the date of the exemption
request. Subsequent to its exemption request, NEDA provided the DTF
balance and cost estimates for these same activities in its letter
dated April 2, 2020 for the DAEC PSDAR and in Enclosure 1 to its March
26, 2020 annual report on the status of decommissioning funding for
DAEC (ADAMS Accession No. ML20086L916). On May 29, 2020, NEDA
supplemented its request and provided, among other things, the most
recently available NEDA DAEC DTF balance. The NRC staff considered each
of these submittals in its review of the exemption request.
The requirements of 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) restrict 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
[[Page 51073]]
definition of ``decommission'' in 10 CFR 50.2 is:
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. The requirements of 10
CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) also restrict the use of DTF disbursements (other
than for ordinary administrative costs and other incidental expenses of
the fund in connection with the operation of the fund) to
decommissioning expenses until final radiological decommissioning is
completed. Therefore, an exemption from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) and 10
CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) is needed to allow NEDA to use funds from the DAEC
DTF for spent fuel management and site restoration activities at DAEC.
The requirements of 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) further provide that, except
for withdrawals being made under 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8) or for payments of
ordinary administrative costs and other incidental expenses of the fund
in connection with the operation of the fund, no disbursement may be
made from the DTF without written notice to the NRC at least 30 working
days in advance. Therefore, an exemption from 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) is
also needed to allow NEDA to use funds from the DAEC DTF for spent fuel
management and site restoration activities at DAEC without prior NRC
notification.
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) and 10 CFR
50.75(h)(1)(iv) would allow NEDA to use a portion of the funds from the
DAEC DTF for spent fuel management and site restoration activities at
DAEC without prior notice to the NRC, 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) and 10 CFR
50.75(h)(1)(iv) is to provide reasonable assurance that adequate funds
will be available for the radiological decommissioning of power
reactors. Based on the site-specific DCE and the cash flow analysis,
use of a portion of the DAEC DTF for spent fuel management and site
restoration activities at DAEC will not adversely impact NEDA's ability
to complete radiological decommissioning within 60 years and terminate
the DAEC license. Furthermore, an exemption from 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv)
to allow the licensee to make withdrawals from the DTF for spent fuel
management and site restoration activities without prior written
notification to the NRC will not affect the sufficiency of funds in the
DTF to accomplish radiological decommissioning 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 and
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 public health and safety.
C. Consistent With the Common Defense and Security
The requested exemption would allow NEDA to use funds from the DAEC
DTF for spent fuel management and site restoration activities at DAEC.
Spent fuel management under 10 CFR 50.54(bb) is an integral part of the
planned NEDA decommissioning and license termination process and will
not adversely affect NEDA'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) and 10 CFR
50.75(h)(1)(iv), which restrict 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 these requirements would prohibit the withdrawal of
funds from the DAEC DTF for activities other than radiological
decommissioning activities at DAEC, such as for spent fuel management
and site restoration activities, until final radiological
decommissioning at DAEC has been completed.
The aggregate DAEC DTF balances across all licensed owners as of
December 31, 2019 was $568,294,503. The NEDA DAEC DTF balance as of
Decemeber 31, 2019 was $454,453,798. This amount represents NEDA's 70%
ownership of DAEC. In its letter dated May 29, 2020, NEDA provided an
updated NEDA DAEC DTF balance of $416,135,029 as of April 30, 2020. The
NEDA analysis projects the total radiological decommissioning cost of
DAEC to be approximately $724,688,000 in 2018 dollars. As required by
10 CFR 50.54(bb), NEDA estimated the costs associated with spent fuel
management at DAEC to be $259,466,000 in 2018 dollars.
The NRC staff performed an independent cash flow analysis of the
DAEC DTF over the 60-year SAFSTOR
[[Page 51074]]
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 NEDA has provided reasonable
assurance that adequate funds will be available for the radiological
decommissioning of DAEC, 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
requirements of 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) and 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv)
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.
In its submittal, NEDA also requested exemption from the
requirement of 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) concerning prior written
notification to the NRC of withdrawals from the DTF to fund activities
other than radiological decommissioning. The underlying purpose of
notifying the NRC prior to withdrawal of funds from the DTF is to
provide opportunity for NRC intervention, when deemed necessary, if the
withdrawals are for expenses other than those authorized by 10 CFR
50.75(h)(1)(iv) and 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8) that could result in there being
insufficient funds in the DTF to accomplish radiological
decommissioning.
By granting the exemption to 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) and 10 CFR
50.82(a)(8)(i)(A), the NRC staff considers that withdrawals consistent
with the licensee's submittal dated February 25, 2020, as supplemented
by letter dated May 29, 2020, 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 PSDAR, DCE, and the February 25, 2020, as supplemented by letter
dated May 29, 2020, 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 spent fuel management. 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. Therefore, the granting of the exemption
to 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) to allow the licensee to make withdrawals
from the DTF to cover authorized expenses for spent fuel management and
site restoration activities without prior written notification to the
NRC will still meet the underlying purpose of the regulation.
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) and 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv)
were adopted.
The underlying purposes of 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) and 10 CFR
50.75(h)(1)(iv) would be achieved by allowing NEDA to use a portion of
the DAEC DTF for spent fuel management and site restoration activities
without prior NRC notification, and compliance with the regulations
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 human environment (see Environmental Assessment
and Finding of No Significant Impact published in the Federal Register
on August 4, 2020 (85 FR 47255).
IV. Conclusions
In consideration of the above, the NRC staff finds that the
proposed exemption confirms the adequacy of funding in the DAEC 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.
[[Page 51075]]
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 public health and safety, and is consistent with the common
defense and security. Also, special circumstances are present.
Therefore, the Commission hereby grants NEDA an exemption from the
requirements of 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) and 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) to
allow use of a portion of the funds from the DAEC DTF for spent fuel
management and site restoration activities in accordance with the DAEC
PSDAR and DCE, dated April 2, 2020. Additionally, the Commission hereby
grants NEDA an exemption from the requirement of 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv)
to allow such withdrawals without prior NRC notification.
This exemption is effective upon issuance.
Dated: 12th day of August 2020.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Craig G. Erlanger,
Director, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2020-18078 Filed 8-18-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P