ML17305B053

Approves Withholding of CEN-390(V)-P from Public Disclosure Per 10CFR2.790

ML17305B053
Person / Time
Site:	Palo Verde
Issue date:	09/17/1990
From:	Peterson S Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:	Conway W ARIZONA PUBLIC SERVICE CO. (FORMERLY ARIZONA NUCLEAR
References
NUDOCS 9009240176
Download: ML17305B053 (8)

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UNITEDSTATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D. C. 20555 September 17, 1990 Docket No. 50-528 Mr. William F.

Conway Executive Vice President Arizona Public Service Company Post; Office Box 53999 Phoenix, Arizona 85072-3999

SUBJECT:

REQUEST FOR WITHHOLDING INFORMATION FROM PUBLIC DISCLOSURE By your application dated November 8, 1989, you submitted the Combustion Engineering (CE) report, "Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station, Unit 1, End-of-Cycle 2 Fuel Examination Report CEN-390(V)-P," October 1989, and requested that it be withheld from public disclosure pursuant to 10 CFR 2.790.

A letter and an affidavit from CE, the owner of the information, was included in your application.

CE stated that the submitted information should be considered exempt from mandatory public disclosure for the following reasons:

1.

The information sought to be withheld from public disclosure are fuel rod and fuel assembly irradiation growth data, and design modeling methodology for System 80 assemblies, which is owned and has been held in confidence by Combustion Engineering.

2.

The information consists of test data or other similar data concerning a process, method or component, the application of which results in substantial competitive advantage to Combustion Engineering.

3.

The information is of a type customarily held in confidence by Combustion Engineering and not customarily disclosed to the public.

Combustion Engineering has a rational basis for determining the types of information customarily held in confidence by it and, in that connection, utilizes a system to determine when and whether to hold certain types of information in confidence.

The details of the aforementioned system were provided to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission via letter DP-537 from F. N. Stern to Frank Schroeder dated December 2, 1974.

This system was applied in determining that the subject document herein is proprietary.

4.

The information is being transmitted to the Commission in confidence under the provisions of 10 CFR 2.790 with the under-standing that it is to be received in confidence by the Commission.

5.

The information, to the best of op knowledge and belief, is not available in public sources, and any disclosure to third parties has been made pursuant to regulatory provisions or proprietary

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Mr. William F.

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6.

Public disclosure of the information is likely to cause substantial harm to the competitive position of Combustion Engineering because:

a.

A similar product is manufactured and sold by major pressurized water reactor competitors of Combustion Engineering.

b. Development of this information by C-E required thousands of manhours and hundreds of thousands of dollars.

To the best of my knowledge and belief a competitor would have to undergo similar expense in generating equivalent information.

c. In order to acquire such information, a competitor would also require considerable time and inconvenience to develop fuel rod and fuel assembly irradiation growth data, and design modeling methodology for System 80 assemblies.

d.

The information required significant effort and expense to obtain the licensing approvals necessary for application of the information.

Avoidance of this expense would decrease a

competitor's cost in applying the information and marketing the product to which the information is applicable.

e.

The information consists of fuel rod and fuel assembly irradiation growth data, and design modeling methodology for System 80 assemblies, the application of which provides a

competitive economic advantage.

The availabi lity of such information to competitors would enable them to modify their product to better compete with Combustion Engineering, take marketing or other actions to improve their product's position or impair the position of Combustion Engineering's

product, and avoid developing similar data and analyses in support of their processes, methods or apparatus.

f. In pricing Combustion Engineering's products and services, significant research, development, engineering, analytical, manufacturing, licensing, quality assurance and other costs and expenses must be included.

The ability of Combustion Engineering's competitors to utilize such information without similar expenditure of resources may enable them to sell at prices reflecting significantly lower costs.

g.

Use of the information by competitors in the international marketplace would increase their ability to market nuclear steam supply systems by reducing the costs associated with

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Mr. William F.

Conway September 17, 1990 their technology development.

In addition, disclosure would have an adverse economic impact on Combustion Engineering's potential for obtaining or maintaining foreign licensees.

We have reviewed your application and the material in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR 2.790 and, on the basis of CE's statements, have determined that the submitted information sought to be withheld contains trade secrets or proprietary commercial information.

Therefore, the version of the submitted information marked as proprietary will be withheld from public disclosure pursuant to 10 CFR 2.790(b)(5) and Section 103(b) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended.

Withholding from public inspection shall not affect the right, if any, of persons properly and directly concerned to inspect the documents.

If the need

arises, we may send copies of this information to our consultants working in this area.

We will, of course, ensure that the consultants have signed the appropriate agreements for handling proprietary information.

If the basis for withholding this information from public inspection should change in the future such that the information could then be made available for public inspection, you should promptly notify the NRC.

You should also understand that the NRC may have cause to review this determination in the future, for example, if the scope of a Freedom of Information Act request includes your information.

In all review situations, if the NRC makes a

determination adverse to the above, you will be notified in advance of any public disclosure.

S ince rely, Qgginal Signed By:

Sheri R. Peterson, Project Manager Project Directorate V

Division of Reactor Projects - III, IV, V and Special Projects Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation cc:

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Mr. William F.

Conway Arizona Public Service Company Palo Verde CC Arthur C. Gehr, Esq.

Snell 8 Wilmer 3100 Valley Center Phoenix, Arizona 85073 Charles R. Kocher, Esq. Assi stant Council James A. Boeletto, Esq.

Southern California Edison Company P. 0.

Box 800

Rosemead, Ca 1 ifornia 91770 Senior Resident Inspector U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission HC-03 Box 293-NR Buckeye, Arizona 85326 Regional Administrator, Region V

U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 1450 Maria Lane Suite 210 Walnut Creek, California 94596 Mr. Charles B. Brinkman Washington Nuclear Operations Combustion Engineering, Inc.

12300 Twinbrook Parkway, Suite 330 Rockville, Maryland 20852 Mr. Charles Tedford, Director Ar izona Radiation Regulatory Agency 4814 South 40 Street Phoenix, Arizona 85040 Chairman Maricopa County Board of Supervisors 111 South Third Avenue Phoenix, Arizona 85003 Mr. Jack R.

Newman Newman 5 Holtzinger P.C.

1615 L Street, NW, Suite 1000 Washington, DC 20036

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