[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 21 (Tuesday, February 2, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5357-5358]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-2139]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2009-0336]
In the Matter of Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., et al.; Order
Extending the Effectiveness of the Approval of the Indirect Transfer of
Facility Operating Licenses
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Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
Entergy Nuclear Generation Company (Pilgrim Docket No. 50-293.
Nuclear Power Station). License No. DPR-35.
Entergy Nuclear Indian Point 2, LLC (Indian Docket Nos. 50-003, 50-247) and 72-51.
Point Nuclear Generating Unit Nos. 1 and License Nos. DPR-5, DPR-26.
2).
ENTERGY NUCLEAR INDIAN POINT 3, LLC (Indian Docket No. 50-286.
Point Nuclear Generating Unit No. 3). License No. DPR-64.
Entergy Nuclear Fitzpatrick, LLC (James A. Docket Nos. 50-333 and 72-12.
FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant). License No. DPR-59.
Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC Docket Nos. 50-271 and 72-59.
(Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station). License No. DPR-28.
Entergy Nuclear Palisades, LLC (Palisades Docket Nos. 50-255 and 72-7.
Nuclear Plant). License No. DPR-20.
(Big Rock Point)........................... Docket Nos. 50-155 and 72-43.
License No. DPR-6.
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I
Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (ENO) and Entergy Nuclear
Generation Company (Entergy Nuclear) are co-holders of the Facility
Operating License, No. DPR-35, which authorizes the possession, use,
and operation of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station (Pilgrim). Pilgrim
is a boiling water nuclear reactor that is owned by Entergy Nuclear and
operated by ENO. The facility is located on the western shore of Cape
Cod in the town of Plymouth on the Entergy Nuclear site in Plymouth
County, Massachusetts.
ENO and Entergy Nuclear Indian Point 2, LLC (ENIP2) are co-holders
of the Facility Operating License No. DPR-5, which authorizes the
possession of the Indian Point Nuclear Generating Unit No. 1 (IP1). IP1
is a pressurized water nuclear reactor that is owned by ENIP2 and
maintained by ENO. IP1 was permanently shut down in 1974 and placed in
a safe storage condition pending decommissioning. The facility is
located in Westchester County, New York.
ENO and ENIP2 are co-holders of the Facility Operating License No.
DPR-26, which authorizes the possession, use, and operation of the
Indian Point Nuclear Generating Unit No. 2 (IP2). ENO and Entergy
Nuclear Indian Point 3, LLC (ENIP3) are co-holders of the Facility
Operating License No. DPR-64, which authorizes the possession, use, and
operation of the Indian Point Nuclear Generating Unit No. 3 (IP3). IP2
and IP3 are both pressurized water nuclear reactors that are owned by
ENIP2 and ENIP3, respectively, and operated by ENO. The facilities are
located in Westchester County, New York.
ENO and Entergy Nuclear FitzPatrick, LLC (EN-FitzPatrick) are co-
holders of the Facility Operating License No. DPR-59, which authorizes
the possession, use, and operation of the James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear
Power Plant (FitzPatrick). FitzPatrick is a boiling water nuclear
reactor that is owned by EN-FitzPatrick and operated by ENO. The
facility is located in Scriba, Oswego County, New York.
ENO and Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC (EN-Vermont Yankee) are
co-holders of the Facility Operating License No. DPR-28, which
authorizes the possession, use, and operation of the Vermont Yankee
Nuclear Power Station (Vermont Yankee). Vermont Yankee is a boiling
water nuclear reactor that is owned by EN-Vermont Yankee and operated
by ENO. The facility is located in the town of Vernon, Windham County,
Vermont.
ENO and Entergy Nuclear Palisades, LLC (EN-Palisades) are co-
holders of the Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-20, which
authorizes the possession, use, and operation of the Palisades Nuclear
Plant (Palisades). Palisades is a pressurized water nuclear reactor
that is owned by EN-Palisades and operated by ENO. The facility is
located in Van Buren County, Michigan.
ENO and EN-Palisades are co-holders of the Facility Operating
License No. DPR-06, which authorizes the possession of Big Rock Point.
Big Rock Point is an independent spent fuel storage installation
(ISFSI) that is owned by EN-Palisades and operated by ENO. The facility
is located in Charlevoix County, Michigan.
II
The NRC's Orders dated July 28, 2008, consented to the indirect
transfer of control of the licenses of the above facilities pursuant to
Sec. 50.80 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations in
connection with a proposed corporate restructuring and establishment of
Enexus Energy Corporation. By its terms, the Orders of July 28, 2008,
would become null and void if the license transfers were not completed
by July 28, 2009, unless upon application and for good cause shown,
such date
[[Page 5358]]
was extended by the Commission. By Order dated July 24, 2009, the NRC
staff determined that good cause had been shown to extend the
effectiveness of the Orders of July 28, 2008, through January 28, 2010.
Similarly, by its terms, the Order of July 24, 2009, becomes null and
void if the license transfers are not completed by January 28, 2010,
unless upon application and for good cause shown, such date is extended
by the Commission.
III
By letter dated November 3, 2009, as supplemented by letter dated
December 10, 2009, ENO, acting on behalf of itself, Entergy Nuclear,
ENIP2, ENIP3, EN-FitzPatrick, EN-Vermont Yankee, and EN-Palisades
(together the Applicants), submitted a request for an extension of the
effectiveness of the Orders of July 28, 2008, such that they would
remain effective through August 1, 2010. According to the submittal,
diligent efforts have been made to obtain the required State and
Federal regulatory approvals, and many of the required approvals have
been obtained. ENO has expressed confidence that it will receive all of
the required approvals for the transaction. However, proceedings are
ongoing before the New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) and
the State of Vermont Public Service Board (PSB) and these two State
agencies may not complete their regulatory approval processes in time
to complete the restructuring and establishment of Enexus Energy
Corporation prior to January 28, 2010, as required by the NRC Orders
consenting to the proposed restructuring and associated indirect
license transfers.
As indicated in ENO's letter dated August 18, 2009, an amended
petition has been submitted to the New York PSC that includes several
enhancements to the transaction. In Vermont, Entergy Nuclear Vermont
Yankee, LLC, ENO, and Enexus have entered into a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) with the Vermont Department of Public Service. This
MOU must be approved by the Vermont PSB.
The Applicants are concerned that the transaction may not be
completed by January 28, 2010, as required by the current Orders.
Moreover, beginning in early 2010, there are certain ``blackout
periods'' imposed by Federal regulations in connection with efforts to
finalize the audited 2009 annual financial results for Entergy
Corporation. Once such blackout periods begin, limitations on access to
the financial markets would likely delay completion of the transaction
until the June or July 2010 time frame.
As stated in the licensee's submittal, the conditions under which
the NRC issued the Orders approving the license transfers have not
changed significantly. The technical qualifications of the new
organization and other bases for approving the transfers remain intact
and the various inter-company contractual arrangements and financial
support described in the application and supplemental information
submitted to support the NRC staff's review and issuance of its safety
evaluation (SE), remain valid and fully support the staff's findings.
In support of the claim that the financial qualifications have not
significantly changed, ENO submitted revised proprietary financial
projections for the plant licensees and Enexus for the 5 calendar years
2010-2014 along with responses to staff questions regarding
decommissioning funding assurance. As such, the current conditions
continue to support the staff's findings regarding the technical and
financial qualifications of the affected licensees.
The NRC staff has considered the submittal of November 3, 2009, as
supplemented by letter dated December 10, 2009, and has determined that
good cause to extend the effectiveness of the Orders of July 28, 2008,
has been shown in that the delay in completing the transaction was not
caused by the licensee. The findings set forth above are supported by a
SE dated January 22, 2010.
IV
Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 161b, 161i, 161o, and 184 of the
Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 2201(b), 2201(i),
2201(o), and 2234; and 10 CFR 50.80, It is hereby ordered that the
effectiveness of the Orders of July 28, 2008, described herein are
extended such that if the proposed corporate restructuring and
establishment of Enexus Energy Corporation is not consummated by August
1, 2010, the Orders of July 28, 2008, and July 24, 2009, shall become
null and void, unless upon application and for good cause shown, such
date is further extended by Order.
This Order is effective upon issuance.
For further details with respect to this Order, see the submittal
dated November 3, 2009 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management
System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML093100496), as supplemented by letter
dated December 10, 2009 (ADAMS Accession No. ML093630884), and the SE
dated January 22, 2010 (ADAMS Accession No. ML093620895), which may be
examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room,
located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor),
Rockville, MD, and accessible electronically through the ADAMS Public
Electronic Reading Room link at the NRC Web site: http://www.nrc.gov.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 22 day of January 2010.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Charles L. Miller,
Director, Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental
Management Programs.
Joseph G. Giitter,
Director, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation.
Michael F. Weber,
Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2010-2139 Filed 2-1-10; 8:45 am]
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