ML110601196

Issuance of Amendments Regarding the Use of Optimized Zirlo Fuel Rod Cladding

ML110601196
Person / Time
Site:	North Anna
Issue date:	04/14/2011
From:	Joel Wiebe Plant Licensing Branch II
To:	Heacock D Virginia Electric & Power Co (VEPCO)
wiebe j s, DORL/LPL2-1, 415-6606
References
TAC ME3885, TAC ME3886
Download: ML110601196 (17)

Text

UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001 April 14. 2011 Mr. David A. Heacock President and Chief Nuclear Officer Virginia Electric and Power Company Innsbrook Technical Center 5000 Dominion Boulevard Glen Allen, VA 23060-6711

SUBJECT:

NORTH ANNA POWER STATION, UNIT NOS. 1 AND 2, ISSUANCE OF AMENDMENTS REGARDING THE USE OF OPTIMIZED ZIRLO' FUEL ROD CLADDING (TAC NOS. ME3885 AND ME3886)

Dear Mr. Heacock:

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued the enclosed Amendment No. 263 to Renewed Facility Operating License No. NPF-4 and Amendment No. 244 to Renewed Facility Operating License No. NPF-7 for the North Anna Power Station, Unit Nos. 1 and 2, respectively. The amendments change the Technical Specifications (TSs) in response to your application dated May 6,2010.

These amendments revise TS 4.2.1, "Fuel Assemblies," to add Optimized ZIRLO' as an acceptable fuel rod cladding material. In addition. the amendments revise TS 5.6.5.b to add the Westinghouse topical report for Optimized ZIRLO' to the list of analytical methods used to determine the core operating limits.

A copy of the Safety Evaluation is also enclosed. The Notice of Issuance will be included in the Commission's biweekly Federal Register notice.

Sincerely.

~kject Plant Licensing Branch 11-1 Manager Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket Nos. 50-338 and 50-339

Enclosures:

1. Amendment No. 263 to NPF-4

2. Amendment No. 244 to NPF-7

3. Safety Evaluation cc w/encls: Distribution via Listserv

UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001 VIRGINIA ELECTRIC AND POWER COMPANY DOCKET NO. 50-338 NORTH ANNA POWER STATION. UNIT NO.1 AMENDMENT TO RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Amendment No. 263 Renewed License No. NPF-4

1. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has found that:

A. The application for amendment by Virginia Electric and Power Company et aI., (the licensee) dated May 6,2010, complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's rules and regulations set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I; B. The facility will operate in conformity with the application. the provisions of the Act, and the rules and regulations of the Commission; C. There is reasonable assurance (i) that the activities authorized by this amendment can be conducted without endangering the health and safety of the public, and (ii) that such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations; D. The issuance of this amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public; and E. The issuance of this amendment is in accordance with 10 CFR Part 51 of the Commission's regulations and all applicable requirements have been satisfied.

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2. Accordingly, the license is amended by changes to the Technical Specifications as indicated in the attachment to this license amendment, and paragraph 2.C.(2) of Renewed Facility Operating license No. NPF-4 is hereby amended to read as follows:

(2) Technical Specifications The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A, as revised through Amendment No. 263 , are hereby incorporated in the renewed license. The licensee shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications.

3. This license amendment is effective as of its date of issuance and shall be implemented within 60 days of issuance.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Gloria Kulesa, Chief Plant licensing Branch 11-1 Division of Operating Reactor licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Attachment:

Changes to license No. NPF-4 and the Technical Specifications Date of Issuance: Apri 1 14, 2011

UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001 VIRGINIA ELECTRIC AND POWER COMPANY DOCKET NO. 50-339 NORTH ANNA POWER STATION, UNIT NO.2 AMENDMENT TO RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Amendment No. 244 Renewed License No. NPF-7

1. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has found that:

A. The application for amendment by Virginia Electric and Power Company et aI., (the licensee) dated May 6,2010, complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's rules and regulations set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I; B. The facility will operate in conformity with the application, the provisions of the Act, and the rules and regulations of the Commission; C. There is reasonable assurance (i) that the activities authorized by this amendment can be conducted without endangering the health and safety of the public, and Oi) that such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations; D. The issuance of this amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public; and E. The issuance of this amendment is in accordance with 10 CFR Part 51 of the Commission's regulations and all applicable requirements have been satisfied.

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2. Accordingly, the license is amended by changes to the Technical Specifications as indicated in the attachment to this license amendment, and paragraph 2.C.(2) of Renewed Facility Operating License No. NPF-7 is hereby amended to read as follows:

(2) Technical Specifications The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A, as revised through Amendment No. 244 , are hereby incorporated in the renewed license. The licensee shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications.

3. This license amendment is effective as of its date of issuance and shall be implemented within 60 days of issuance.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Gloria Kulesa, Chief Plant Licensing Branch 11-1 Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Attachment:

Changes to License No. NPF-7 and the Technical Specifications Date of Issuance: Apri 1 14, 2011

ATTACHMENT TO LICENSE AMENDMENT NO. 263 RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. NPF-4 DOCKET NO. 50-338 AND TO LICENSE AMENDMENT NO. 244 RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. NPF-7 DOCKET NO. 50-339 Replace the following pages of the Licenses and the Appendix "A" Technical Specifications (TSs) with the enclosed pages as indicated. The revised pages are identified by amendment number and contain marginal lines indicating the areas of change.

Remove Pages Insert Pages Licenses Licenses License No. NPF-4, page 3 License No. NPF-4, page 3 License No. NPF-7, page 3 License No. NPF-7, page 3 TSs TSs 4.0-1 4.0-1 5.6-4 5.6-4

-3 (2) Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Part 70, VEPCO to receive, possess, and use at any time special nuclear material as reactor fuel, in accordance with the limitations for storage and amounts required for reactor operation, as described in the Updated Final Safety Analysis Report; (3) Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30, 40, and 70, VEPCO to receive, possess, and use at any time any byproduct, source, and special nuclear material as sealed neutron sources for reactor startup, sealed sources for reactor instrumentation and radiation monitoring equipment calibration, and as fission detectors in amounts as required; (4) Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30,40, and 70, VEPCO to receive, possess, and use in amounts as required any byproduct, source, or special nuclear material, without restriction to chemical or physical form, for sample analysis or instrument calibration or associated with radioactive apparatus or component; and (5) Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30 and 70, VEPCO to possess, but not separate, such byproduct and special nuclear materials as may be produced by the operation of the facility.

C. This renewed operating license shalt be deemed to contain and is subject to the conditions specified in the following Commission regulations in 10 CFR Chapter I:

Part 20, Section 30.34 of Part 30, Section 40.41 of Part 40, Sections 50.54 and 50.59 of Part 50, and Section 70.32 of Part 70; is subject to all applicable provisions of the Act and to the rules, regulations, and orders of the Commission now or hereafter in effect; and is subject to the additional conditions specified or incorporated below:

(1) Maximum Power Level VEPCO is authorized to operate the North Anna Power Station, Unit No.1, at reactor core power levels not in excess of 2940 megawatts (thermal).

(2) Technical Specifications The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A, as revised through Amendment No. 263, are hereby incorporated in the renewed license. The licensee shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications.

NORTH ANNA - UNIT 1 Renewed License No. NPF-4 Amendment No. 263

-3 (3) Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30, 40, and 70, VEPCO to receive, possess, and use at any time any byproduct, source, and special nuclear material as sealed neutron sources for reactor startup, sealed sources for reactor instrumentation and radiation monitoring equipment calibration, and as fission detectors in amounts as required; (4) Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30, 40, and 70, VEPCO to receive, possess, and use in amounts as required any byproduct, source, or special nuclear material, without restriction to chemical or physical form, for sample analysis or instrument calibration or associated with radioactive apparatus or components; and (5) Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30,40, and 70, VEPCO to possess, but not separate, such byproduct and special nuclear materials as may be produced by the operation of the facility.

C. This renewed license shall be deemed to contain and is supject to the conditions specified in the Commission's regulations as set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I and is subject to all applicable provisions of the Act and to the rules, regulations, and orders of the Commission now or hereafter in effect; and is subject to the additional conditions specified or incorporated below:

(1) Maximum Power Level VEPCO is authorized to operate the facility at steady state reactor core power levels not in excess of 2940 megawatts (thermal).

(2) Technical Specifications The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A, as revised through Amendment No. 244, are hereby incorporated in the renewed license. The licensee shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications.

(3) Additional Conditions The matters specified in the following conditions shall be completed to the satisfaction of the Commission within the stated time periods following the issuance of the condition or within the operational restrictions indicated. The removal of these conditions shall be made by an amendment to the renewed license supported by a favorable evaluation by the Commission:

a. If VEPCO plans to remove or to make significant changes in the normal operation of equipment that controls the amount of radioactivity in efflUents from the North Anna Power Station, the NORTH ANNA - UNIT 2 Renewed License No. NPF-7 Amendment rt>. 244

Design Features 4.0 4.0 DESIGN FEATURES 4.1 Site Location The North Anna Power Station is located in the north-central portion of Virginia in Louisa County and is approximately 40 miles north-northwest of Richmond, 36 miles east of Charlottesville; 22 miles southwest of Fredericksburg; and 70 miles southwest of Washington, D.C. The site is on a peninsula on the southern shore of Lake Anna at the end of State Route 700.

4.2 Reactor Core 4.2.1 Fuel Assemblies The reactor shall contain 157 fuel assemblies. Each assembly shall consist of a matrix of Zircaloy, ZIRLO, Optimized ZIRLO, or M5 fuel rods with an initial composition of natural or slightly enriched uranium dioxide (U0 2 ) as fuel material. Limited substitutions of zirconium alloy or stainless steel filler rods for fuel rods, in accordance with approved applications of fuel rod configurations, may be used. Fuel assemblies shall be limited to those fuel designs that have been analyzed with applicable NRC staff approved codes and methods and shown by tests or analyses to comply with all fuel safety design bases. A limited number of lead test assemblies that have not completed representative testing may be placed in nonlimiting core locations.

4.2.2 Control Rod Assemblies The reactor core shall contain 48 control rod assemblies. The control material shall be silver indium cadmium, as approved by the NRC.

4.3 Fuel Storage 4.3.1 Criticality 4.3.1.1 The spent fuel storage racks are designed and shall be maintained with:

a. Fuel assemblies having a maximum U-235 enrichment of 4.6 weight percent; North Anna Units 1 and 2 4.0-1 Amendments 263 and 244

Reporting Requirements 5.6 5.6 irements 5.6.5 CORE OPERATING LIMITS REPORT (COLR)

b. (continued)

14. BAW-I0199P-A, "The BWU Critical Heat Flux Correlations."

15. BAW-10170P-A, "Statistical Core Design for Mixing Vane Cores."

16. EMF-2103 (P) (A), "Realistic Large Break LOCA Methodology for Pressurized Water Reactors."

17. EMF-96-029 (P)(A), "Reactor Analysis System for PWRs."

18. BAW-I0l68P-A, "RSG LOCA - BWNT Loss-of-Coolant Accident Evaluation Model for ReCirculating Steam Generator Plants,"

Volume II only (SBLOCA models).

19. DOM-NAF-2-A, "Reactor Core Thermal-Hydraulics Using the VIPRE-D Computer Code," including Appendix A, "Qualification of the F-ANP BWU CHF Correlations in the Dominion VIPRE-D Computer Code."

20. WCAP-126l0-P-A and CENPD-404-P-A, Addendum I-A, "Optimized ZIRLO" (Westinghouse Proprietary).

c. The core operating limits shall be determined such that all applicable limits (e.g .* fuel thermal mechanical limits. core thermal hydraulic limits, Emergency Core Cooling Systems (ECCS) limits. nuclear limits such as SDM. transient analysis limits, and accident analysis limits) of the safety analysis are met.

d. The COLR, including any midcycle revisions or supplements, shall be provided upon issuance for each reload cycle to the NRC.

5.6.6 PAM Report When a report is required by Condition B of LCO 3.3.3, "Post Accident Monitoring (PAM) Instrumentation," a report shall be submitted within the following 14 days. The report shall outline the cause of the inoperability. and the plans and schedule for restoring the instrumentation channels of the Function to OPERABLE status.

North Anna Units 1 and 2 5.6-4 Amendments 263 and 244

UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001 SAFETY EVALUATION BY THE OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION RELATED TO AMENDMENT NO. 263 TO RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. NPF-4 AND AMENDMENT NO. 244 TO RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. NPF-7 VIRGINIA ELECTRIC AND POWER COMPANY NORTH ANNA POWER STATION. UNIT NOS. 1 AND 2 DOCKET NOS. SO-338 AND SO-339

1.0 INTRODUCTION

By letter dated May 6, 2010 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS), Accession No. ML 101260S17), Virginia Electric and Power Company (VEPCO, the licensee), submitted a request for changes to the North Anna Power Station, Unit Nos. 1 and 2 (NAPS 1 and 2), Technical Specifications (TSs). The requested changes would revise TS 4.2.1, "Fuel Assemblies," to add Optimized ZIRLO' as an acceptable fuel rod cladding material. In addition, the requested changes would revise TS S.6.S.b to add the Westinghouse topical report for Optimized ZIRLO' to the list of analytical methods used to determine the core operating limits.

The Optimized ZIRLO' cladding, manufactured by Westinghouse Electric Company, is a new version of the ZIRLO' material and was approved in a topical report Addendum 1-A to WCAP-12610-P-A and CENPD-404-P-A, entitled "Optimized ZIRLO', (ADAMS Accession No. ML062080S76) (portions of this topical report are non-publicly available because they contain proprietary information) (the report with the proprietary information removed is available in ADAMS, Accession No. ML062080S69), for Westinghouse and Combustion Engineering (CE) fuel designs. The fuel rod burnup limits were approved to a peak rod average of 62,000 MWD/MTU for Westinghouse fuel and 60,000 MWD/MTU for CE fuel. However, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff requires that licensees using the Optimized ZIRLO' comply with the conditions and limitations listed in the safety evaluation (SE) dated June 10, 200S (ADAMS Accession No. MLOS1670408).

2.0 REGULATORY EVALUATION

The regulations in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Part SO, Section SO.90, "Application for Amendment of License or Construction Permit," allow a licensee to amend or

-2 change the original license application. Section 50.92, "Issuance of Amendment," specifies that the NRC staff will be guided by the considerations which govern the issuance of initial licenses to the extent applicable and appropriate in determining whether an amendment will be issued to the applicant.

The June 10, 2005, SE approved the use of Optimized ZI RLO ' as a fuel cladding material based on:

(1) similarities with standard ZIRLOTM, (2) demonstrated material performance, and (3) a commitment to provide irradiated data and validate fuel performance models ahead of burn ups achieved in batch application.

The NRC staffs SE for Optimized ZIRLOTM includes 10 conditions and limitations for its use.

By letter dated March 23, 2011 (ADAMS Accession No. ML110600388), the NRC staff approved an exemption from specific requirements of 10 CFR 50.46, "Acceptance criteria for emergency core cooling systems [ECCS] for light-water nuclear power reactors," and Appendix K to 10 CFR Part 50, "ECCS Evaluation Models," for NAPS 1 and 2 to allow the use of Optimized ZIRLOTM for fuel rod cladding.

Based on the above, the NRC staff concludes that consideration of the licensee's request is consistent with NRC regulations and guidance.

3.0 TECHNICAL EVALUATION

3.1 Conditions and Limitations In the June 10, 2005, SE, the NRC staff concluded that:

Based upon demonstrated material performance in Addendum 1 and in response to RAls [Request for Additional Information] and the irradiated database, the NRC staff has approved Optimized ZIRLOTM for full batch implementation.

In the SE conclusion, the NRC staff stated:

The NRC staff reviewed the effects of Optimized ZIRLOTM using the appropriate fuel design requirements of [Standard Review Plan] SRP 4.2 and 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix A, General Design Criteria and found that the TR provided reasonable assurance that under both normal and accident conditions, Westinghouse and CE fuel assembly designs implementing Optimized ZIRLOTM fuel cladding would be able to safely operate and comply with NRC regulations.

The SE also stated that licensees referencing Addendum 1 to the TR to implement Optimized ZIRLOTM must ensure compliance with ten issues as specified in the SE. VEPCO has documented its compliance with these 10 conditions and limitations in its license amendment request dated May 6, 2010, and has committed to ensuring compliance with them for future fuel

- 3 reloads. The NRC staff has reviewed VEPCO's response to each of the 10 SE conditions and limitations as discussed below.

Condition 1 requires an exemption from 10 CFR 50.46 and Part 50, Appendix K. By letter dated March 23, 2011, (ADAMS Accession No. ML110600388) the NRC staff approved an exemption from specific requirements of 10 CFR 50.46, and Appendix K to 10 CFR Part 50 for NAPS 1 and 2 to allow the use of Optimized ZIRLOTM for fuel rod cladding.

Condition 2 states that the fuel rod burnup limit remains at currently established limits. VEPCO states in the May 6,2010, letter that the lead fuel rod burnup NAPS 1 and 2 fuel assemblies incorporating Optimized ZIRLO' fuel rod cladding will continue to be limited to 60 GWd/MTU until such time that a new fuel rod burnup limit may be approved for North Anna by the NRC.

Condition 3 requires that the maximum fuel rod waterside corrosion, as predicted by the best-estimate model, satisfy the proprietary limits of hydrides for all locations of the fuel rod.

VEPCO states in the May 6,2010, letter that the maximum fuel rod waterside corrosion for fuel using Optimized ZIRLO' fuel rod cladding will be confirmed to be less than the specified proprietary limits for all locations of the fuel rod. VEPCO states that the evaluations are performed to confirm that the appropriate corrosion limits are satisfied as part of the normal reload design process under 10 CFR 50.59.

Condition 4 states that all the conditions listed in previous NRC SE approvals for methodologies used for standard ZIRLO' and Zircaloy-4 fuel analysis will continue to be met, except that the use of Optimized ZIRLO' cladding in addition to standard ZIRLO' and Zircaloy-4 cladding is now approved. VEPCO states in the May 6, 2010, letter that the analyses of fuel using Optimized ZIRLO' fuel rod cladding will continue to meet approved design limits. Any conditions associated with using approved methodologies for ZIRLO' and Zircaloy-4 fuel analysis will continue to be applied as part of the Optimized ZIRLO' analyses. VEPCO states that confirmation that the approved design limits are met using current approved methodologies (including any additional conditions that may have been identified as part of the approval of those methodologies) is performed under 10 CFR 50.59 as part of the normal reload design process.

Condition 5 limits the use of all methodologies only within the range for which ZIRLO' and Optimized ZIRLO' data were acceptable and for which the verifications discussed in Addendum 1 to WCAP-12610-P-A and CENPD-404-P-A and responses to requests for additional information were performed. VEPCO states in the May 6,2010, letter that all approved methodologies used for normal reload core design will be used to support operation only within the ranges for which the ZIRLO' and Optimized ZI RLO' data were acceptable and for which verifications were discussed in WCAP-12610-P-A and CENPD-404-P-A and requests for additional information. VEPCO states that this is a required part of the normal reload core design process.

Conditions 6 and 7 of the June 10, 2005, SE require validating in-reactor performance and fuel performance models based on Lead Test Assembly (LTA) data that must be completed prior to their initial batch loading and prior to the startup of subsequent cycles. Condition 6 requires the licensee to ensure that Westinghouse provide the NRC staff with letter(s) containing Optimized ZIRLO' LTA data on visual observations, measurements of oxidation of LTA fuel rods, comparison of profilometry data with predictions. fuel rod length, and fuel assembly length. In

-4 addition, Condition 6 requires the licensee to ensure that Westinghouse provide data to confirm applicability with currently approved fuel performance models.

VEPCO noted that Westinghouse has provided four references related to test data and models (References 4, 5, 6 and 7 of the May 6, 2010, letter) (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML070100389 (proprietary) and ML070100388 (non-proprietary), ML073130562 (proprietary) and ML073130560 (non-proprietary), ML080390453 (proprietary) and ML080390452 (non-proprietary), and ML090080382 (proprietary) and ML090080381 (non-proprietary),

respectively) that address Conditions 6 and 7. VEPCO also provided the following statement in response to Condition 6:

LTA measured data and favorable results from visual examinations of once and twice-burned LTAs confirm that the current fuel performance models are applicable for Optimized ZIRLO' fuel rods through two cycles of operation. As new data become available, Westinghouse will continue to provide additional data from the Optimized ZIRLO' LTA programs, such as results of recent examinations on Millstone 3 LTAs that operated for three cycles and achieved burnups in excess of 62 GWd/MTU. Because reload batches of fuel with Optimized ZIRLO' cladding have already been introduced at Arkansas Nuclear One Unit 2 and Waterford 3, and implementation of Optimized ZIRLO' fuel rod cladding at North Anna Units 1 and 2 is not planned before 2012, sufficient data should be available to satisfy this Condition for North Anna fuel. Nevertheless, Dominion will confirm that the requirements of this Condition are met as it applies to the use of Optimized ZIRLO' for North Anna Units 1 and 2.

In response to Condition 7, VEPCO stated that:

Currently, the data from two cycles of operation have been evaluated and the fuel rod creep models from fuel rod design codes have been used to predict the growth and creep performance of the Vogtle samples. This information was provided to the NRC in Reference 6 [of the May 6,2010, letter]. Because reload batches of fuel with Optimized ZIRLO' cladding have already been introduced at Arkansas Nuclear One Unit 2 and Waterford 3, and implementation of Optimized ZIRLO' fuel rod cladding at NAPS Units 1 and 2 is not planned before 2011, sufficient data should be available that this Condition will not be an issue for NAPS fuel. Nevertheless, Dominion [VEPCO] will confirm that the requirements of this Condition are met as it applies to North Anna Units 1 and 2 fuel.

Condition 8 provides specific limits to account for the relative differences in unirradiated strength (yield and ultimate tensile) between Optimized ZIRLO' and standard ZIRLO' in cladding and structural analyses until irradiated data for Optimized ZIRLO' have been collected and provided to the NRC staff. VEPCO states in the May 6, 2010, letter that design analyses of North Anna fuel rods using Optimized ZIRLO' cladding will use the yield strength and ultimate tensile strength as modified by Condition 8 limits until such time that the NRC agrees that Westinghouse has provided sufficient basis to remove or otherwise modify this Condition. VEPCO states that the requirements of this condition will be confirmed to be incorporated into the analyses for fuel incorporating Optimized ZIRLO' fuel rod cladding as part of the normal core reload activities.

- 5 Condition 9 is applicable to plants that are licensed with LOCBART or STRIKIN-II codes. VEPCO states in the May 6,2010, letter that NAPS 1 and 2 are not licensed with LOCBART or STRIKIN-II, therefore this condition is not applicable.

Condition 10 provides a limit on the Westinghouse coolability limit on peak central temperature.

VEPCO states in the May 6, 2010, letter that for cycles using fuel with Optimized ZIRLO' cladding, if fuel is predicted to enter DNB during the locked rotor event, Dominion will assess the fuel against the specified coolability limit on PCT until such time that the NRC agrees that Westinghouse has provided sufficient basis to remove or otherwise modify this Condition.

Based upon the information provided, the NRC staff finds that VEPCO's response, as discussed above, meets the requirements of all SE Conditions and is acceptable for NAPS 1 and 2.

Therefore, the NRC staff concludes that the Optimized ZIRLO' fuel design is acceptable for use in NAPS 1 and 2 to a peak rod average burnup limit of 62 GWD/MTU. While this safety evaluation allows a peak rod average burnup limit of 62 GWD/MTU for the Optimized ZIRLO' fuel design, Condition 1 and VEPCO's response related to Condition 1, limits the peak rod average burnup for all fuel at NAPS 1 and 2 to 60 GWD/MTU as specified in NRC letters dated December 14, 1993 (ADAMS Accession No. ML110750123) and April 20, 1994 (ADAMS Accession No. ML110750124).

3.2 TS Revisions 3.2.1 Section 4.2.1 Fuel Assemblies The licensee proposes to add Optimized ZIRLO' as an acceptable fuel rod cladding material.

The new sentence is stated as follows:

" ... Each assembly shall consist of a matrix of Zircaloy, ZIRLO, Optimized ZIRLO, or M5 fuel rods ... "

Based on the approved Optimized ZIRLO' fuel, the NRC staff concludes that this revision is acceptable for NAPS 1 and 2.

3.2.2 Section 5.6.5.b Core Operating Limits Report (COLR)

The licensee proposes to add the approved Westinghouse TR, WCAP-12610-P-A and CENPD-404-P-A, Addendum 1-A, "Optimized ZIRLO" (Westinghouse Proprietary), to the list of references in the COLR.

Based on the approved reports, the NRC staff concludes that this revision is acceptable for NAPS 1 and 2.

3.3 Conclusion The NRC staff has reviewed the licensee's license amendment request for TS revisions. Based on the above evaluation, the staff concludes that the Optimized ZIRLO' fuel design is acceptable to a peak rod average burnup limit of 62 GWD/MTU and the TS revisions are acceptable for NAPS 1 and 2. While this safety evaluation allows a peak rod average burnup limit of

-6 62 GWD/MTU for the Optimized ZIRLO'fuel design, Condition 1 and VEPCO's response related to Condition 1, limits the peak rod average burnup for all fuel at NAPS 1 and 2 to 60 GWD/MTU as specified in NRC letters dated December 14, 1993 (ADAMS Accession No. ML110750123) and April 20, 1994 (ADAMS Accession No. ML110750124).

4.0 STATE CONSULTATION

In accordance with the Commission's regulations, the Virginia State official was notified of the proposed issuance of the amendments. The State official had no comments.

5.0 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATION

The amendments change requirements with respect to installation or use of a facility component located within the restricted area as defined in 10 CFR Part 20. The NRC staff has determined that the amendments involve no significant increase in the amounts and no significant change in the types of any effluents that may be released offsite and that there is no significant increase in individual or cumulative occupational radiation exposure. The Commission has previously issued a proposed finding that the amendments involve no significant hazards consideration, and there has been no public comment on such finding (75 FR 52781, August 27, 2010). The amendment also relates to changes in recordkeeping, reporting, or administrative procedures or requirements.

Accordingly, the amendments meet the eligibility criteria for categorical exclusions set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9) and (c)(10). Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared in connection with the issuance of the amendments.

6.0 CONCLUSION

The Commission has concluded, based on the considerations discussed above, that: (1) there is reasonable assurance that the health and safety of the public will not be endangered by operation in the proposed manner, (2) such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations, and (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.

Principal Contributor: SWu, NRR/DSS Date: April 14, 2011

ML110601196 OFFICE NRR/LPL2-1/PM NRR/LPL2-1/LA DSS/SNPB/BC DIRSIITSB/BC OGC/NLO NRR/LPL2-1/BC NRR/LPL2-1/PM NAME JWiebe MO'Brien AMendiola RElliott MWright GKulesa JWiebe (PBoyle for) (KCotton for)

DATE 03/31/11 03/30/11 03/31/11 04/4111 04/12/11 04/14/11 04/14/11