[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 42 (Friday, March 3, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13474-13476]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-04443]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-263; NRC-2023-0031]
Northern States Power Company--Minnesota; Xcel Energy; Monticello
Nuclear Generating Plant, Unit 1
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Subsequent license renewal application; opportunity to request
a hearing and to petition for leave to intervene.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering an
application for the subsequent license renewal of Renewed Facility
Operating License No. DPR-22, which authorizes Northern States Power
Company, a Minnesota corporation (NSPM or the applicant), doing
business as Xcel Energy, to operate Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant
(MNGP), Unit 1. The subsequent renewed license would authorize the
applicant to operate MNGP for an additional 20 years beyond the period
specified in the current license. The current operating license for
MNGP expires September 8, 2030.
DATES: A request for a hearing or petition for leave to intervene must
be filed by May 2, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2021-0031 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-2021-0031. Address
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann;
telephone: 301-287-0624; 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.
Public Library: A copy of the subsequent license renewal
application for MNGP can be accessed at the following public library:
Monticello Great River Regional Library, 200 West 6th St., Monticello,
MN 55362.
NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public
documents, by appointment, at the NRC's PDR, Room P1 B35, One White
Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. To make
an appointment to visit the PDR, please send an email to
[email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, between 8
a.m. and 4 p.m. eastern time (ET), Monday through Friday, except
Federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jessica Hammock, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-0740; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The NRC received a subsequent license renewal application (SLRA)
from NSPM, dated January 9, 2023 (ADAMS Accession No. ML23009A354),
filed pursuant to section 103 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as
amended (the Act), and part 54 of title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR), to renew the operating license for MNGP at 2,004
megawatts thermal. The MNGP unit is a boiling-water reactor designed by
General Electric and is located in Monticello, Minnesota. A notice of
receipt of the SLRA was published in the Federal Register on January
31, 2023 (88 FR 6327).
The NRC staff has determined that NSPM has submitted sufficient
information in accordance with 10 CFR 54.19, 54.21, 54.22, 54.23,
51.45, and 51.53(c), to enable the staff to undertake a review of the
application, and that the application is, therefore, acceptable for
docketing. The current docket no. 50-263 for Renewed Facility Operating
License No. DPR-22, will be retained. The determination to accept the
SLRA for docketing does not constitute a determination that a
subsequent renewed license should be issued and does not preclude the
NRC staff from requesting additional information as the review
proceeds.
Before issuance of the requested subsequent renewed licenses, the
NRC will have made the findings required by the Act and the
Commission's rules and regulations. In accordance with 10 CFR 54.29,
the NRC may issue a subsequent renewed license on the basis of its
review if it finds that actions have been
[[Page 13475]]
identified and have been or will be taken with respect to: (1) managing
the effects of aging during the period of extended operation on the
functionality of structures and components that have been identified as
requiring aging management review; and (2) time-limited aging analyses
that have been identified as requiring review, such that there is
reasonable assurance that the activities authorized by the renewed
license will continue to be conducted in accordance with the current
licensing basis and that any changes made to the plant's current
licensing basis will comply with the Act and the Commission's
regulations.
Additionally, in accordance with 10 CFR 51.95(c), the NRC staff
will prepare an environmental impact statement as a supplement to the
Commission's NUREG-1437, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement for
License Renewal of Nuclear Power Plants,'' dated June 2013 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML13106A241). In considering the SLRA, the Commission
must find that the applicable requirements of subpart A of 10 CFR part
51 have been satisfied, and that any matters raised under 10 CFR 2.335
have been addressed. Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.26, and as part of the
environmental scoping process, the staff intends to hold public scoping
meetings. Detailed information regarding the environmental scoping
meetings will be the subject of a separate Federal Register notice.
II. Opportunity To Request a Hearing and Petition for Leave To
Intervene
Within 60 days after the date of publication of this notice, any
person (petitioner) whose interest may be affected by this action may
file a request for a hearing and petition for leave to intervene
(petition) with respect to the action. Petitions shall be filed in
accordance with the Commission's ``Agency Rules of Practice and
Procedure'' in 10 CFR part 2. Interested persons should consult 10 CFR
2.309. If a petition is filed, the presiding officer will rule on the
petition and, if appropriate, a notice of a hearing will be issued.
Petitions must be filed no later than 60 days from the date of
publication of this notice in accordance with the filing instructions
in the ``Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)'' section of this document.
Petitions and motions for leave to file new or amended contentions that
are filed after the deadline will not be entertained absent a
determination by the presiding officer that the filing demonstrates
good cause by satisfying the three factors in 10 CFR 2.309(c)(1)(i)
through (iii).
A State, local governmental body, Federally recognized Indian
Tribe, or designated agency thereof, may submit a petition to the
Commission to participate as a party under 10 CFR 2.309(h) no later
than 60 days from the date of publication of this notice.
Alternatively, a State, local governmental body, Federally recognized
Indian Tribe, or agency thereof may participate as a non-party under 10
CFR 2.315(c).
For information about filing a petition and about participation by
a person not a party under 10 CFR 2.315, see the information provided
at ADAMS Accession No. ML20340A053 (https://adamswebsearch2.nrc.gov/webSearch2/main.jsp?AccessionNumber=ML20340A053) and on the NRC's
public website at https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/regulatory/adjudicatory/hearing.html#participate.
III. Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)
All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings including
documents filed by an interested State, local governmental body,
Federally recognized Indian Tribe, or designated agency thereof that
requests to participate under 10 CFR 2.315(c), must be filed in
accordance with 10 CFR 2.302. The E-Filing process requires
participants to submit and serve all adjudicatory documents over the
internet, or in some cases, to mail copies on electronic storage media,
unless an exemption permitting an alternative filing method, as further
discussed, is granted. Detailed guidance on electronic submissions is
located in the ``Guidance for Electronic Submissions to the NRC''
(ADAMS Accession No. ML13031A056) and on the NRC's public website at
https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html.
To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least 10
days prior to the filing deadline, the participant should contact the
Office of the Secretary by email at [email protected], or by
telephone at 301-415-1677, to (1) request a digital identification (ID)
certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or
representative) to digitally sign submissions and access the E-Filing
system for any proceeding in which it is participating; and (2) advise
the Secretary that the participant will be submitting a petition or
other adjudicatory document (even in instances in which the
participant, or its counsel or representative, already holds an NRC-
issued digital ID certificate). Based upon this information, the
Secretary will establish an electronic docket for the proceeding if the
Secretary has not already established an electronic docket.
Information about applying for a digital ID certificate is
available on the NRC's public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/getting-started.html. After a digital ID certificate is
obtained and a docket created, the participant must submit adjudicatory
documents in Portable Document Format. Guidance on submissions is
available on the NRC's public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/electronic-sub-ref-mat.html. A filing is considered complete at the
time the document is submitted through the NRC's E-Filing system. To be
timely, an electronic filing must be submitted to the E--Filing system
no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on the due date. Upon receipt of a
transmission, the E-Filing system time-stamps the document and sends
the submitter an email confirming receipt of the document. The E-Filing
system also distributes an email that provides access to the document
to the NRC's Office of the General Counsel and any others who have
advised the Office of the Secretary that they wish to participate in
the proceeding, so that the filer need not serve the document on those
participants separately. Therefore, applicants and other participants
(or their counsel or representative) must apply for and receive a
digital ID certificate before adjudicatory documents are filed to
obtain access to the documents via the E-Filing system.
A person filing electronically using the NRC's adjudicatory E-
Filing system may seek assistance by contacting the NRC's Electronic
Filing Help Desk through the ``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC's
public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html, by
email to [email protected], or by a toll-free call at 1-866-672-
7640. The NRC Electronic Filing Help Desk is available between 9 a.m.
and 6 p.m., ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
[[Page 13476]]
Participants who believe that they have good cause for not
submitting documents electronically must file an exemption request, in
accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their initial paper filing
stating why there is good cause for not filing electronically and
requesting authorization to continue to submit documents in paper
format. Such filings must be submitted in accordance with 10 CFR
2.302(b)-(d). Participants filing adjudicatory documents in this manner
are responsible for serving their documents on all other participants.
Participants granted an exemption under 10 CFR 2.302(g)(2) must still
meet the electronic formatting requirement in 10 CFR 2.302(g)(1),
unless the participant also seeks and is granted an exemption from 10
CFR 2.302(g)(1).
Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in the
NRC's electronic hearing docket, which is publicly available at https://adams.nrc.gov/ehd, unless excluded pursuant to an order of the
presiding officer. If you do not have an NRC-issued digital ID
certificate as previously described, click ``cancel'' when the link
requests certificates and you will be automatically directed to the
NRC's electronic hearing dockets where you will be able to access any
publicly available documents in a particular hearing docket.
Participants are requested not to include personal privacy information
such as social security numbers, home addresses, or personal phone
numbers in their filings unless an NRC regulation or other law requires
submission of such information. With respect to copyrighted works,
except for limited excerpts that serve the purpose of the adjudicatory
filings and would constitute a Fair Use application, participants
should not include copyrighted materials in their submission.
Detailed information about the license renewal process can be found
under the Nuclear Reactors icon at https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal.html on the NRC's public website. Copies of
the application to renew the operating license for MNGP are available
for public inspection at the NRC's PDR, and on the NRC's public website
at https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications.html. The application may be accessed in ADAMS through the
NRC Library on the internet at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html under ADAMS Accession No. ML23009A354. As previously stated,
persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in
accessing the documents located in ADAMS may contact the NRC's PDR
reference staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by
email to [email protected].
Dated: February 28, 2023.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Lauren K. Gibson,
Chief, License Renewal Project Branch, Division of New and Renewed
Licenses, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2023-04443 Filed 3-2-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P