[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 86 (Thursday, May 2, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35862-35864]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-09487]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-18, 50-70, 50-73, 50-183, and 70-754; NRC-2023-0191]
In the Matter of GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Americas, LLC and
NorthStar Vallecitos, LLC; Vallecitos Nuclear Center; Direct Transfer
of Licenses
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Order; issuance.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an
order approving the license transfer application filed by GE-Hitachi
Nuclear Energy Americas, LLC (GEHA) and NorthStar Vallecitos, LLC
(NorthStar Vallecitos), dated September 1, 2023, as supplemented by
letters dated September 5, 2023, October 19, 2023, November 1, 2023,
January 22, 2024, and March 15, 2024. Specifically, the order approves
the direct transfer of control of Possession Only License Nos. DPR-1
for the Vallecitos Boiling Water Reactor, TR-1 for the General Electric
Test Reactor, R-33 for the Nuclear Test Reactor, and DR-10 for the
Empire State Atomic Development Associates Experimental Vallecitos
Superheat Reactor and Special Nuclear Material (SNM) License No. SNM-
960 from GEHA to NorthStar Vallecitos and the issuance of conforming
amendments to the licenses, including license conditions.
DATES: The order was issued on April 25, 2024, and is effective for 1
year.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2023-0191 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-2023-0191. Address
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann;
telephone: 301-415-0624; 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, at 301-415-4737,
or by email to [email protected]. The order, the NRC staff safety
evaluation supporting the order, and the draft conforming license
amendments are available in ADAMS under Package Accession No.
ML24039A011.
NRC's PDR: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies
of publicly available documents, is open by appointment. 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: Chris Allen, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone: 301-415-6877; email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the order is attached.
Dated: April 26, 2024.
[[Page 35863]]
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
William Allen,
Project Manager, Reactor Decommissioning Branch, Division of
Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery, and Waste Programs, Office of
Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
Attachment--Order Approving Transfer of Licenses and Conforming License
Amendments
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
In the Matter of: GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Americas, LLC, Vallecitos
Nuclear Center 50-183, EA-24-040 DR-10, Docket Nos.: 50-18, 50-70, 50-
73, and 70-754, License Nos.: DPR-1, TR-1, R-33, and SNM-960.
Order Approving Transfer of Licenses and Conforming License Amendments
I.
GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Americas, LLC (GEHA) is the holder of
Possession Only License No. DPR-1 for the Vallecitos Boiling Water
Reactor, Possession Only License No. TR-1 for the General Electric Test
Reactor, Possession Only License No. R-33 for the Nuclear Test Reactor,
and Possession Only License No. DR-10 for the Empire State Atomic
Development Associates Experimental Vallecitos Superheat Reactor. These
licenses authorize GEHA to possess the nuclear material associated with
each reactor license subject to the conditions specified therein. They
do not authorize GEHA either to use or to operate the reactors
associated with the licenses. These reactor facilities are located at
the Vallecitos Nuclear Center (VNC) in Sunol, California. GEHA is also
the holder of Special Nuclear Material (SNM) License No. SNM-960, which
authorizes the storage of SNM at the VNC.
II.
By application dated September 1, 2023 (Agencywide Documents Access
and Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML23244A247), as
supplemented by letters dated September 5, 2023 (ML23248A232); October
19, 2023 (ML23292A336); November 1, 2023 (ML23305A052); January 22,
2024 (ML24022A323); and March 15, 2024 (ML24075A277), GEHA and
NorthStar Vallecitos, LLC (NorthStar Vallecitos) (collectively, the
Applicants) requested that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
consent to the direct transfer of control of Possession Only License
No. DPR-1 for the Vallecitos Boiling Water Reactor, Possession Only
License No. TR-1 for the General Electric Test Reactor, Possession Only
License No. R-33 for the Nuclear Test Reactor, Possession Only License
No. DR-10 for the Empire State Atomic Development Associates
Experimental Vallecitos Superheat Reactor, and SNM License No. SNM-960
(collectively, the licenses) located at the VNC in Sunol, California.
Specifically, the Applicants requested that the NRC consent to the
direct transfer of GEHA's currently licensed authority to possess
nuclear material, to maintain the VNC in a safe condition (including
storage, control, and maintenance of all nuclear material), and to
decommission the VNC to NorthStar Vallecitos. This license transfer
application was submitted to the NRC for approval under Section 184,
``Inalienability of Licenses,'' of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as
amended (AEA), and Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR)
50.80, ``Transfer of licenses''; 10 CFR 50.90, ``Application for
amendment of license, construction permit, or early site permit''; 10
CFR 70.34, ``Amendment of licenses''; and 10 CFR 70.36,
``Inalienability of licenses.'' Notice of the receipt of the license
transfer application and opportunity to comment, request a hearing, and
petition for leave to intervene was published in the Federal Register
on November 8, 2023 (88 FR 77113). The supplemental letters, listed
above, contained clarifying information and did not expand the license
transfer application beyond the scope of the original notice.
GEHA intends to transfer its licensed possession, maintenance, and
decommissioning authorities to NorthStar Vallecitos to expedite the
decommissioning at the VNC. Following approval and completion of the
proposed direct transfer of control of the licenses, NorthStar
Vallecitos would assume licensed responsibility for the VNC through the
transfer of GEHA's responsibility for licensed activities at the VNC to
NorthStar Vallecitos. NorthStar Vallecitos would own the VNC facility
as well as its associated assets and real estate, including its
decommissioning trust fund, title to spent nuclear fuel, and rights
under the terms of its Standard Contract for Disposal of Spent Nuclear
Fuel and/or High-Level Radioactive Waste with the U.S. Department of
Energy. Upon the proposed license transfer, NorthStar Vallecitos would
assume responsibility for compliance with the current licensing basis,
including regulatory commitments that exist at the closing of the
transfer transaction between the Applicants, and would implement any
changes under applicable regulatory requirements and practices. The
Applicants also requested that the NRC impose license conditions
relating to the management of the decommissioning trust fund,
established for the purpose of providing decommissioning financial
assurance for the licenses, and approve conforming administrative
amendments to the licenses to reflect the direct transfer of the
licenses from GEHA to NorthStar Vallecitos.
The NRC received one public comment on the license transfer
application. It is summarized in the NRC staff's safety evaluation of
the license transfer application. The NRC staff reviewed the comment
submission and considered it, as appropriate, as part of its evaluation
of the application.
Under 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. Under 10 CFR 70.36, no license to possess or
use special nuclear material, 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 license transfer application, as supplemented, and
other information before the Commission, and relying upon the
representations and agreements contained in the application, the NRC
staff has determined that NorthStar Vallecitos is qualified to be the
holder of the licenses, and that the direct transfer of the licenses,
as described in the application, is otherwise consistent with
applicable provisions of law, regulations, and orders issued by the
Commission pursuant thereto, subject to the condition set forth below.
Upon review of the request in the license transfer application, as
supplemented, for conforming administrative amendments to the licenses
to reflect the direct transfer of the licenses, the NRC staff has
determined the following:
(1) The application for amendments complies with the standards and
requirements of the AEA and the Commission's rules and regulations set
forth in 10 CFR Chapter I.
(2) 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
[[Page 35864]]
conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations.
(3) The issuance of the amendments will not be inimical to the
common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public.
(4) The issuance of the amendments is in accordance with 10 CFR
part 51, ``Environmental Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing
and Related Regulatory Functions,'' 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 April 25 2024, which is available at ML24039A011.
III.
Accordingly, under Sections 161b, 161i, 161o, and 184 of the AEA;
42 U.S.C. 2201(b), 2201(i), 2201(o), and 2234; and 10 CFR 50.80, 10 CFR
50.90, 10 CFR 70.34, and 10 CFR 70.36, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the
application for the direct transfer of the licenses from GEHA to
NorthStar Vallecitos, as described herein, is approved subject to the
following condition:
Prior to the closing of the license transfer transaction, NorthStar
Vallecitos, LLC shall provide the Director of the NRC's Office of
Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards (NMSS) satisfactory documentary
evidence that it has obtained, or will have obtained upon the closing
of the transaction, the appropriate amount of insurance under 10 CFR
part 140 and 10 CFR 50.54(w), as applicable.
It is further ordered that, consistent with 10 CFR 2.1315(b), the
license amendments that make changes, as indicated in Enclosures 2
through 7 to the letter transmitting this Order, to reflect the subject
direct license transfer are approved. The amendments shall be issued
and made effective at the time the license transfer transaction is
completed.
It is further ordered that NorthStar Vallecitos shall, at least 2
business days before the planned closing of the license transfer
transaction, inform the Director of NMSS in writing of the planned
closing date. Should the proposed transfer not be completed within 1
year of this Order's date of issuance, this Order shall become null and
void; provided, however, that upon written application and for good
cause shown, such date may be extended by order. The condition of this
Order may be amended upon application by the Applicants and approval by
the NRC.
This Order is effective upon issuance.
For further details with respect to this Order, see the license
transfer application dated September 1, 2023, as supplemented on
September 5, 2023; October 19, 2023; November 1, 2023; January 22,
2024; and March 15, 2024, and the associated NRC staff safety
evaluation dated April 25 2024, which are available for public
inspection at the Commission's Public Document Room (PDR), located at
One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland.
Publicly available documents are accessible electronically through
ADAMS in the NRC Library at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html.
Persons who encounter problems with ADAMS should 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: April 25, 2024.
For The Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
/RA/
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John W. Lubinski, Director,
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2024-09487 Filed 5-1-24; 8:45 am]
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