ML20058P152

Forwards Proprietary Response to NRC Findings on Gist, Per 931118 Notice of Nonconformance.Encl Withheld

ML20058P152
Person / Time
Site:	05200004
Issue date:	12/16/1993
From:	Leatherman J GENERAL ELECTRIC CO.
To:	Borchardt R NRC OFFICE OF INFORMATION RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (IRM), Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Shared Package
ML19311B266	List: ML20058P152
References
MFN-235-93, NUDOCS 9312230100
Download: ML20058P152 (5)

Text

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i GENuclear Energy l GeneralDecmc Compsny 17$ Curmer Aveu San Jose, CA 95125 ,

December 16,1993 MFN No. 235-93 1 Docket STN 52-004 Document Control Desk U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington DC 20555 l

Attention: Richard W. Borchardt, Director Standardization Project Directorate

Subject:

Transmittal of Responses to NRC Questions

References:

1. MFN No. 200.93, Docket STN 52-004

2. MFN No.199-93, Docket STN 52-004

3. Letter, R. W. Borchardt to P. W. Marriott, " Notice of Non-Conformance", November 18,1993 References 1 and 2 transmitted copies of slides presented at the November 16,1993 meeting with the staff at the GE offices in Rockville, MD. Further information as requested by Reference 3 is attached to this letter to respond formally to staff concerns regarding the GIST  :

test program.

At the conclusion of the November 16 meeting, GE identified five action items. These action items were to:

1. Prepare an addendum to the scaling report quantifying top down and bottom up parameters. Demonstrate that those parameters GE has identified as not needing to be preserved are small compared to other parameters.

2. Demonstrate that the phenomena identified as "important"in the PIRT analysis are run over the same range of conditions in G1ST as expected in the SBWR.

3. Clarify the time at which the line from the suppression pool to the RPV is open.

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4. Document the procedure used in development of the PIRT tables, with specific emphasis on how it was concluded that phenomena having low or medium importance cannot combine to have a high importance.

5. Determine and document the potential effect ofliquid backflow from the isolation condenser suction line, with specific emphasis on how this system  ;

interaction could effect the performance of the depressurization valves, RPV -

depressurization rate.

i Items 3 and 5 have been completed and are contained in this report. Work has begun on the I remaining three action items, and they are scheduled for completion by February 1,1994.

Sincerely, i

, , 'LC&G2w or J. E. Leatherman -

SBWR Certification Manager .

MC-781, (408)925-2023 i cc: M. Malloy, Project Manager (NRC) (2 attachments) ,

F. W. Hasselberg, Project Manager (NRC) (1 attachment) s F

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A GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY AFFIDAVIT I, Patrick W. Marriott, being duly sworn, depose and state as follows:

(1) I am the SBWR Project Manager, General Electric Company ("GE") and have been delegated the function of reviewing the information described in paragrap sought to be withheld, and have been authorized to apply forg.its withholdm, h 2 (2) The information sought to be withheld is contained in the proprietary document titled " Response to NRC Findings on GIST', dated December 16,1993.  !

(3) In making this application for withholding of proprietary information of which it is an owner, GE relies upon the exemption from disclosure set forth in the Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA"),5 USC Sec. 552(b)(4), and the Trade Secrets Act,18 USC l Sec.1905, and NRC regulations 10 CFR 9.17(a)(4),2.790(a)(4), and 2.790(d)(1) for  !

" trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential"(Exemption 4). The material for which exemption from disclosure is here sought is all " confidential commercial information", and some portions also qualify under the narrower definition of" trade secret", within the meanings assigned to those terms for purposes of FOIA Exemption 4 in, respectively, l Critical Mass Enercy Proiect v. Nuclear Reculatory Commission. 975F2d871 (DC

~ l Cir.1992), and Public Citizen Health Research Group v. FDA,704F2d1280 (DC Cir. '

1983)

(4) Some examples of categories ofinformation which fit into the definition of proprietary information are:

l

a. Information that discloses a process, method, or apparatus, including supporting data and analyses, where prevention ofits use by General j Electric's competitors without license flom General Electric constitutes I

a competitive economic advantage over other companies; I

b. Information which, if used by a competitor, would reduce his expenditure of resources or improve his competitive position in the design, manufacture, shipment, installation, assurance of quality, or l licensing of a similar product; '

c. Information which reveals cost or price information, production capacities, budget levels, or commercial strategies of General Electric, its customers, or its supphers;  ;

Affidavit Page 1

d. Information which reveals aspects of past, present, or future General Electric customer-funded development plans and programs, of potential commercial value to General Electric;

e. Information which discloses patentable subject matter for which it may be desirable to obtain patent protection.

The information sought to be withheld is considered to be proprietary for the reasons set forth in both paragraphs (4)a. and (4)b., above (5) The information sought to be withheld is being submitted to NRC in confidence. The information is of a sort customarily held in confidence by GE, and is in fact so held. Its initial designation as pro arietary information, and the subsequent steps taken to prevent its unauthonzec. disclosure, are as set forth in (6) and (7) following. The information sought to be withheld has, to the best of my knowledge and belief, consistently been held in confidence by GE, no public disclosure has been made, and it is not available in public sources. All disclosures to third parties including any required transmittals to NRC, have been made, or must be made, pursuant to regulatory provisions or proprietary agreements which provide for maintenance of the information in confidence.

(6) Initial ap, proval of proprietary treatment of a document is made by the manager of the onginatiny, com 3onent, the person most likely to be acquainted with the value and sensitivity of the information in relation to industry knowledge.

Access to such documents within GE is limited on a "need to know" basis.

(7) The procedure for approval of external release of such a document typically requires review by the staff manager, project manager, principal scientist or other ec uivalent authority, by the manager of the cognizant marketing function  !

(or his c elegate), and by the Legal Operation, for technical content,  ;

competitive effect, and determination of the accuracy of the proprietary  ;

designation. Disclosures outside GE are limited to regulatory bodies, customers, and potential customers, and their agents, suppliers, and !icensees, i and others with a legitimate need for the information, and then only in l accordance with appropriate regulatory provisions or proprietary agreements.

(8) The information identified in paragraph (2) is classified as proprietary because it contains details of test 3rograms which GE and its associate have conducted and applied to evaluate t le loss-of-coolant accident for the SBWR The development and performance of the test program was achieved at a significant cost, on the order of several million dollars, to GE and its associate.

This information contains GE and associate information which, by nature of the collaboration used to prepare the information, cannot be easily separated into its respective parts. In addition to its dire-ct competitive value to GE, the treatment of the information is bound by contract provisions of an Agreement between GE and the associate which provides for proprietary handling of the information.

)

I Affidavit Page 2 J

1 (9) Public disclosure of the information sought to be withheld is likely to cause substantial harm to GE's competitive position and foreclose or reduce the availability of profit-making opportumties. The information is part of GE's comprehensive BWR safety and technology base, and its commercial value extends beyond the original development cost. The value of the technology base goes beyond the extensive physical database and analytical methodology and includes the value derived from providing analyses done with NRC-approved methods.

The reserch, development, engineering, analytical, and NRC review costs l comprise a substantial investment of time and money by GE and its associate.

The precise value of the expertise to devise an evaluation process and apply the correct analytical methodo! ogy is difficult to quantify, but it clearly is substantial.

GE's competitive advantage will be lost if its competitors are able to use the results of the GE experience to normalize or verify their own process or if they are able to claim an equivalent understanding by demonstrating that they can arrive at the same or similar conclusions.

The value of this information to GE would be lost if the information were disclosed to the public. Making such information available to competitors without their having been required to undertake a similar expenditure of resources would unfairly provide competitors with a windfall, and deprive GE and its associates of the opportunity to exercise their competitive advantage to seek an adequate return on their large investment in developing these very valuable analytical tools.

STATE OF CALIFORNIA gg,-

COUNTY OF SANTA CLARA l Patrick W. Marriott, being duly sworn, deposes and says:

l That he has read the foregoing affidavit and the matters stated therein are true and correct to the best of his knowledge, Executed at San Jose, California, this 17 day of ph ,19 S3

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OFFICIAL SEAL Patrick W.'Marriott Gener61 Electric Company )l $,ff n m ec - cAuroma

. PAULA F. HUSSEY L*JTA cLARA C0!MTY

< N:M* My comm. expires APR 5,1994 a

~ -n ~ ~ nn,1 Subscribed and sworn before me this lY day of hk ,19_93 l SYN 1L%4L-Notary Public, State of CalBornia i Affidavit Page 3 J