ML061070117
| ML061070117 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | PROJ0690 |
| Issue date: | 04/14/2006 |
| From: | Hoffman S NRC/NRR/ADRO/DLR/RLRB |
| To: | Nuclear Energy Institute |
| Hoffman S, NRR,DLR, RLRC, 415-3245 | |
| References | |
| Download: ML061070117 (11) | |
Text
April 14, 2006ORGANIZATION:Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI)
SUBJECT:
SUMMARY
OF THE LICENSE RENEWAL TELEPHONE CONFERENCECALL AND MEETING HELD BETWEEN THE U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION (NRC) STAFF AND THE NUCLEAR ENERGY INSTITUTE (NEI) LICENSE RENEWAL TASK FORCEThe U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff and the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI)License Renewal Task Force held a public telephone conference call and meeting on January 31, 2006, to discuss generic license renewal topics, lessons learned from the audit process, and license renewal process improvements. Enclosure 1 provides a listing of the conference call participants. Enclosure 2 contains the agenda for the conference call. A summary of the discussions follows:1. New issues under development within the NRC that may affect license renewala.Review of later American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Code editions andaddenda as applicable to license renewalThe NRC staff has collected and identified changes in the ASME Boiler and PressureVessel Code,Section XI, between: (1) the 1995 Edition and the 1998 Edition/2000 Addenda, (2) the 1998 Edition/2000 Addenda and the 2001 Edition/2003 Addenda, and(3) the 2001 Edition/2003 Addenda and the 2004 Edition. The information was collected to support the staff's endorsement, conditional endorsement, or rejection of the aforementioned changes.The NRC staff reviewed comparison of changes in various editions and addenda of theASME B&PV Code Section XI previously performed by the staff, ASME personnel, and specific applicants. The staff found three changes that were aging management related. All three changes were found acceptable with one based on an acceptable alternative to volumetric examination. Based on this review, the changes in Subsections IWB, IWC, IWD, IWE, IWF, and IWL of ASME B&PV Code Section XI (1998 Edition,1999 Addenda, 2000 Addenda, 2001 Edition, and 2003 Addenda) were all acceptable. An applicant may use any one as acceptable alternatives to the edition and addenda referenced in the Generic Aging Lessons Learned (GALL) Report aging management programs without the need to submit these alternatives for NRC review inits plant-specific license renewal application. However, currently approved relief requests are not acceptable as a justification for taking exception to a GALL Report recommendation. For these exceptions, the technical basis for the exception must beprovided in the application.The rule change endorsing the 2004 Edition of Section XI of the ASME Code is in thefinal process of NRC concurrence cycle, and was not included in the staff reviewdescribed above. b.Interim Staff Guidance web page updateThe NRC's license renewal web page contains the Interim Staff Guidance (ISG)positions that were incorporated into the September 2005 update of the license renewalguidance documents. It was agreed that these ISGs would be removed and only current ISGs would be posted on the web page until they are incorporated into the nextguidance document update. The web page was subsequently updated to remove the ISGs incorporated into the revised guidance documents.c.Potential ISGIn the December 20, 2005, telephone conference call, the NRC staff identified thepotential need for an ISG concerning corrosion of boiling water reactor, Mark I, drywellsteel containment shells. A separate telephone conference call and meeting was held on January 31, 2006, to discuss this subject.2.Lessons learned from recent safety review auditsA regular agenda item for the monthly telephone conferences or meetings is for the staffand applicants to discuss lessons learned from recent safety review on-site audit activities.
This discussion provides real-time feedback to applicants entering the audit phase for their applications or for use by future applicants. Observations from recent audits include:NRC staff observations from Oyster Creek and other recent auditsa.The audit team thought it was good for future applicants to observe the audit process,as was done by the staff for Susquehanna, Palo Verde, Wolf Creek, Beaver Valley, and the STARS business unit at the Oyster Creek audit. The Oyster Creek audit went well, and subsequent applicants could model their audit preparations on what was done by the applicant for Oyster Creek and also by the applicant for Nine Mile Point.b.It is important for a successful and efficient audit to have complete program basisdocuments.c.The Oyster Creek basis documents in each aging management program (AMP) binderwere good in that they were clearly written and the binders were well-organized.d.Another positive is that the Oyster Creek basis documents contained very thoroughdiscussions of operating experience and industry experience for each AMP.e.There should be cross references between the plant basis documents if there is overlapbetween documents.f.The binders for each Oyster Creek AMP were considered very comprehensive because they contained the basis document and all documents referenced by the AMP in theapplication.g.The official basis document should be in the binder rather than a working document. h.It is advantageous to have the information provided in the binders also in electronicformat as well as on paper. Electronic format helps audit team members prepare their audit report input by allowing them to copy the pertinent information while at the site.i.The potential for dry-well corrosion should be considered for all containments of Mark Idesign.j.Volumetric inspection of small-bore piping socket welds needs to be addressed on aplant specific basis.Applicant observations provided by NEIa.Using the first two days of the audit to review the binders with the plant basis documentsand other material were considered a good practice, as it led to well-focused questions from the audit staff.b.A good practice is for the audit team to announce plans for the breakout sessions asearly as possible, to help ensure the applicant has the right staff available to support the sessions. This is especially important for scheduling breakout sessions with plant personnel. Also helpful to the applicant is for the team to announce its plans for the next day at the end of each audit day, listing the topics and applicant engineering support needed.c.An improvement in the process would be better control of the question and answerprocess during the week of the audit. A different numbering system for the AMP andaging management review questions might be considered. It may also help to have a defined process that the originator follows (e.g., administrative support enters questions into the computer, sends the questions to the audit team lead, etc.). A database wouldhelp the closure process, in that the applicant could sort questions by AMP, reviewer, closed or not closed, etc.d.The breakout sessions and one-on-one discussions were helpful in resolving issues.
e.A positive practice by the NRC staff is to provide the applicant with the audit teamquestions, when possible, before the audit team arrives.f.A better understanding of the documentation needed to support the future time-limitedaging analyses audits would be beneficial. 3.Follow-up on items from December 20, 2005, telephone conference calla.Existing audit process(1) NRC to provide a list of plants with good audit preparation and onsite documentationThe Oyster Creek and Nine Mile Point applicants demonstrated good auditpreparation and onsite documentation in support of the audits. (2)NEI to develop a standard for the content of onsite documentation and provide forNRC staff review.NEI has established a team to develop the standard and intended to provide a draftby the proposed March 2006 meeting. Comments would then be requested by April2006 with the standard finalized in May 2006. NEI's schedules for completing this item and Item 3.a(3) were subsequently delayed.
.(3)NEI to develop a 1-2 page guidance document for the acceptance review andprovide for NRC staff review.NEI has established a team to develop the guidance. The schedule is the same asthat for Item 3.a(2).b.Status of incorporating the scoping and screening review into the audit processThe NRC staff indicated in the December 20, 2005, telephone conference call that itwas considering the potential benefits of performing scoping and screening reviews for applications using onsite audits, similar to the aging management review audits. The goal would be to obtain further efficiencies in the process and help the staff manage its application review workload. The staff's assessment is a long-term activity and the staff will discuss the results of this assessment in future telephone conferences or meetingsas progress is made.c.Pre-submittal audit team leader site visitsIn the December 20, 2005, telephone conference call, the NRC staff indicated that itsintent was for the audit team leader to visit the applicant's facility in advance of theapplication submittal. The staff has determined that this pre-submittal site visit is not required and any needed advance coordination can be done over the telephone.4.New topicsa.Environmental GuidanceA license renewal application is initially considered a tendered application and is notdocketed until completion of an acceptance review. A checklist for performing the acceptance review for the safety portion of the application is contained in Chapter 1 of the license renewal standard review plan, NUREG-1800. The NRC staff is currentlydocumenting the criteria used for performing the environmental acceptance review and plans to incorporate the checklist into the next revision of Supplement 1 to the environmental standard review plan, NUREG-1555. The staff will provide the checklistto NEI for information in the future.The NRC has been reviewing NEI's
?Severe Accident Mitigation Alternatives (SAMA)Analysis Guidance Document," NEI 05-01. The staff is preparing its final comments and will provide them to NEI to revise the document. The staff is also assessing the best means to endorse the NEI document for use in preparing license renewal applications. b.License renewal program auditThe NRC's Office of the Inspector General is conducting a six-month audit of the licenserenewal program and may contact external stakeholders.5.Public participationNo member of the public chose to participate./RA/Stephen T. Hoffman, Senior Project ManagerLicense Renewal Branch B Division of License Renewal Office of Nuclear Reactor RegulationProject No. 690
Enclosures:
As stated cc w/encls: See next page b.License renewal program auditThe NRC's Office of the Inspector General is conducting a six-month audit of the licenserenewal program and may contact external stakeholders.5.Public participationNo member of the public chose to participate./RA/Stephen T. Hoffman, Senior Project ManagerLicense Renewal Branch B Division of License Renewal Office of Nuclear Reactor RegulationProject No. 690
Enclosures:
As stated cc w/encls: See next pageDISTRIBUTION: See next pageAdams Accession no.: ML061070117DOCUMENT NAME:E:\Filenet\ML061070117.wpdOFFICELA:RLRA:DLRPM:RLRB:DLRBC:RLRA:DLRBC:RLRC:DLRBC:RLRB:DLRNAMEYEdmondsSHoffmanLLundKChangJZimmerman DATE4/4/064/5/064/11/064/12/064/14/06OFFICIAL RECORD COPY LIST OF PARTICIPANTS FOR THE TELEPHONE CONFERENCE CALL BETWEEN THE U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION STAFFAND THE NUCLEAR ENERGY INSTITUTEJANUARY 31, 2006ParticipantsAffiliationsStephen HoffmanNuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)P.T. KuoNRC Jacob ZimmermanNRC Louise LundNRC Tomeka TerryNRC Ken ChangNRC Rani FranovichNRC S.K. MitraNRC Linh TranNRC Amy HullNRC Kiyoto TanabeNRC Cayetano SantosNRC R.K. WildNRC Jaclyn StorchNRC Mike GallagherExelon Nuclear James RossNuclear Energy Institute Mike DetamorePPL Susquehanna Steve SchellinNMC Point Beach Roger RuckerBeaver Valley Dave KunsmillerBeaver Valley Steve DortBeaver Valley Alan CoxEntergy Eric BlocherStrategic Teaming and Resource Sharing (STARS)
Paul CrawleySTARS Todd AnselmiSTARS Rich SchallerSTARS Bill VictorC ooperDave BremerCooper Ken BruneTennessee Valley Authority Chalmer MyerSouthern Nuclear Company Kathryn SuttonMorgan, Lewis Marty O'nealWinston Fred PolaskiExelon Al FulviaExelon Lori YulcomeWolf Creek Ken AlbrightPrairie Island LIST OF PARTICIPANTS FOR THE TELEPHONE CONFERENCE CALL BETWEEN THE U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION STAFFAND THE NUCLEAR ENERGY INSTITUTE (CONT.D)JANUARY 31, 2006ParticipantsAffiliationsPaul AitkenDominionMike HeathProgress Energy Roger StewartProgress Energy Bob VincentPalisades Pete MazzaferroNine Mile Point Massoud TafazzoliAREVA Nancy ChapmanBechtel SERCH Deann RaleighScientech TOPICS OF DISCUSSION - TELECONFERENCE MEETING BETWEEN THE U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION STAFF AND THE NUCLEAR ENERGY INSTITUTEJANUARY 31, 20061.New issues under development within the NRC that may affect license renewala.Review of later ASME Code editions and addenda as applicable to license renewalb.Interim Staff Guidance web page update2.Lessons learned from recent safety review audits 3.Follow-up on items from December 20, 2005, telephone conferencea.Existing audit process(1)NRC to provide list of plants with good audit preparation and onsite documentation(2)NEI to develop a standard for the content of onsite documentation and provide for NRC staff review(3)NEI to develop a 1-2 page guidance document for the acceptance review andprovide for NRC staff reviewb.Status of incorporating the scoping and screening review into the audit process c.Pre-submittal audit team leader site visits4.New topics 5.Public participation NUCLEAR ENERGY INSTITUTE Project No. 690
cc:
Mr. Joe BartellU.S. Department of Energy NE-42 Washington, DC 20585Ms. Christine S. Salembier, CommissionerState Liaison Officer Department of Public Service 112 State St., Drawer 20 Montipelier, VT 05620-2601Mr. James RossNuclear Energy Institute 1776 I St., N.W., Suite 400 Washington, DC 20006-3708Mr. Frederick W. PolaskiManager License Renewal Exelon Corporation 200 Exelon Way Kennett Square, PA 19348Peter A. MazzaferroSite Project Manager - License Renewal Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station, LLC
P.O. Box 63 Lycoming, NY 13093Mr. David LochbaumUnion of Concerned Scientists 1707 H St., NW, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20006-3919Mark AckermanProject Manager, License Renewal FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company
P.O. Box 4 Route 168 (Mail Stop BV-SGRP)
Shippingport, PA 15077Mr. Paul Gunter, DirectorReactor Watchdog Project Nuclear Information & Resource Service 6930 Carroll Avenue, Suite 340Takoma Park, MD 20912Mr. Hugh JacksonPublic Citizen's Critical Mass Energy &
Environment Program 215 Pennsylvania Ave., SE Washington, DC 20003Mary OlsonNuclear Information & Resource Service Southeast Office P.O. Box 7586 Asheville, NC 28802 Talmage B. ClementsManager - License Renewal Progress Energy P.O. Box 1551 Raleigh, NC 27602Mr. Garry G. YoungManager, License Renewal Services 1448 SR 333, N-GSB-45 Russellville, AR 72802Mr. William Crough, ManagerLicensing and Regulatory Affairs Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant Tennessee Valley Authority P.O. Box 2000 Decatur, AL 35609Patrick BurkeLicense Renewal Project Manager Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant Nuclear Management Company, LLC 2807 West County Road 75 Monticello, MN 55362-9637Robert A. VincentLicensing Lead - License Renewal Project Palisades Nuclear Plant 27780 Blue Star Memorial Highway Covert, MI 49043
Note to Organization Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) from Stephen T. Hoffman, dated: April, 14, 2006
SUBJECT:
SUMMARY
OF THE LICENSE RENEWAL TELEPHONE CONFERENCE ANDMEETING HELD BETWEEN THE U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION (NRC) STAFF AND THE NUCLEAR ENERGY INSTITUTE (NEI)
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Y. L. (Renee) Li DLR RLR/REB Staff
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