IR 05000282/2009001

Annual Assessment Letter - Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 (05000282-09-001 and 050000306-09-001)

ML090630792
Person / Time
Site:	Prairie Island
Issue date:	03/04/2009
From:	Pederson C Division Reactor Projects III
To:	Wadley M Northern States Power Co
References
IR-09-001
Download: ML090630792 (7)

Text

rch 4, 2009

SUBJECT:

ANNUAL ASSESSMENT LETTER - PRAIRIE ISLAND NUCLEAR GENERATING PLANT, UNITS 1 AND 2 (05000282/2009001 AND 05000306/2009001)

Dear Mr. Wadley:

On February 10, 2009, the NRC staff completed its performance review of Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2. Our technical staff reviewed performance indicators (PIs) for the most recent quarter and inspection results for the period from January 1 through December 31, 2008. The purpose of this letter is to inform you of our assessment of your safety performance during this period and our plans for future inspections at your facility.

This performance review and enclosed inspection plan do not include security information. A separate letter designated and marked as "Official Use Only - Security Related Information" will include the security cornerstone review and resultant inspection plan.

Overall, Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2, operated in a manner that preserved public health and safety and fully met all cornerstone objectives. Plant performance for the most recent quarter at Prairie Island Unit 2, as well as for the first three quarters of the assessment cycle, was within the Licensee Response column of the NRC=s Action Matrix based on all inspection findings being classified as having very low safety significance (Green) and all PIs indicating performance at a level requiring no additional NRC oversight (Green). However, plant performance for Prairie Island Unit 1 was within the Regulatory Response column of the NRC=s Action Matrix based on one inspection finding in the Mitigating Systems cornerstone being classified as having low to moderate safety significance (White). This White finding, from the fourth quarter of 2008, involved failure of the turbine driven auxiliary feedwater pump to operate subsequent to a valid start signal. Although plant performance was within the Regulatory Response column, the significance of another inspection finding within the Public Radiation Safety cornerstone is still under review as part of the Significance Determination Process which, when finalized, may change our assessment of your plants safety performance.

The finding involved an October 29, 2008, radioactive material shipment from your facility that did not conform to the applicable Department of Transportation (DOT) regulatory requirements when it arrived at the shipping destination.

Currently, we plan to conduct a supplemental inspection (95001) at Unit 1 in addition to reactor oversight process (ROP) baseline inspections at your facility. Please notify us of your readiness to conduct the supplemental inspection. The enclosed inspection plan details the inspections, less those related to security, scheduled through June 30, 2010. The inspection plan is provided to allow for the resolution of any scheduling conflicts and personnel availability issues well in advance of inspector arrival onsite.

Routine resident inspections are not listed due to their ongoing and continuous nature. The inspections in the last 9 months of the inspection plan are tentative and may be revised at the mid-cycle review.

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390 of the NRC=s ARules of Practice,@ a copy of this letter and its enclosure will be made available electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document Room or from the Publicly Available Records (PARS) component of NRC's document system (ADAMS). ADAMS is accessible from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html (the Public Electronic Reading Room).

If circumstances arise which cause us to change this inspection plan, we will contact you to discuss the change as soon as possible. Please contact John (Jack) Giessner at 630-829-9619 with any questions you may have regarding this letter or the inspection plan.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Cynthia D. Pederson, Director Division of Reactor Projects Docket Nos. 50-282; 50-306;72-010 License Nos. DPR-42; DPR-60; SNM-2506 Enclosure: Prairie Island Inspection/Activity Plan DISTRIBUTION:

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