ML19305B419
| ML19305B419 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Comanche Peak  |
| Issue date: | 02/20/1980 |
| From: | Harold Denton Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| To: | Cowden G TEXAS, STATE OF |
| Shared Package | |
| ML19305B420 | List: |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 8003190629 | |
| Download: ML19305B419 (2) | |
Text
prigk UNITED STATES f
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
- p WASHING TON, D. C. 20555
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FEB 101980 Mr. George M. Cowden Chairman Public Utility Commission of Texas 7800 Shoal Creek Boulevard Suite 400N Austin, Texas 78757
Dear Mr. Cowden:
Your letter (Mailgram) to the Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Comission concerning a possible delay in the issuance of operating licenses for the Comanche Peak Steam Electric Station, Units 1 and 2, has been referred to oeak Steam me for reply. Since rulings and decisions relating to the Comanche Electric Station could be subject to review by the Commissioners, it is not appropriate for members of the Comission to comment at this time.
The Texas Utilities Generating Company submitted their application for the Comanche Peak operating licenses in February 1978. Since that time we have been engaged in a review of the application. At this time we have requested and received additional information on most of the items in the application which appeared incomplete during our first review. We are currently reviewing these responses, and we have placed contracts with several national labora-tories for a part of this review of the Comanche Peak application in an effort to counter shortages in NRC staff resources. Before the operating license can be' issued, the staff's review of these non-Three Mile Island related matters must be essentially complete and a safety evaluation report prepared, the staff's evaluation must be reviewed by the Advisory Comittee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS) and a hearing before the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (ASLB)mustbeconductedandcompleted.
3.z In addition, the NRC staff is conducting a thorough investigation of the acci-dent which occurred at the Three Mile Island Power Plant, Unit No. 2, on March 28, 1979. This investigation considers studies of the potential design deficiencies in the plant, operator response to the accident including operator errors and/or misinterpretation of plant instrumentation and all other aspects of the accident which might lead to information that would inprove the safety of nuclear power plants. The major emphasis of the current staff effort is focused on nuclear power plants that are presently licensed to operate. How-ever the results of these investigations will also be applied to plants that are currently under construction and for which operating licenses have been applied for but not yet issued, such as the Comar4he Peak Steam Electric Station, Units 1 and 2.
In addition, Commission review of the results of other investigations, including the Presidential Comission and the NRC's Special Inquiry Group, can be expected to lead to additional requirements.
We are in the final stages of development of an Action Plan for Comission review and approval implementing recommendations of the President's Commis-sion and other studies resulting from the Three Mile Island accident.
W
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Mr. George M. Cowden.
This Action Plan will include new or improved safety objectives, the detailed criteria for their implementation and the various implementation deadlines.
We intend to submit a final draft of the Action Plan during February 1980 to the Commission for review and approval. Any new safety requirements arising from the approved Action Plan will be evaluated to determine whether they are applicable to the Comanche Peak Steam Electric Station, and will be applied accordingly.
We recognize that these investigations may delay the issuance of the operating licenses for the Comanche Peak Steam Electric Station and that such a delay could place an undue economic burden on the ratepayers of Texas. Therefore,
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we are attempting to schedule our reviews so as to eliminate or minimize such delays.
In this regard we will be visiting the Comanche Peak Steam Electric Station during May 1980 to review the construction progress to date. The objective of this visit is to estimate when the plant construction and pre-fuel load testing will be completed. We will then try to give sufficient priority to the staff's review of Comanche Peak so that the ACRS review and the ASLB hearings can be completed on a schedule such that the operating licenses can be issued at the time the respective units are ready to load fuel.
However, if this is not possible, we must proceed on the basis that primary 3
consideration should be given to the public's health and safety. That is, our ongoing review, our investigation of Three Mile Island accident, and the hearings before the ASLB must all be completed prior to the issuance of the operating licenses for the Comanche Peak Steam Electric Station.
I hope this information is responsive to your concerns.
Sincerely, entus
.d by SiLDhqj m
Harold R. Denton, Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation