ML20137K196

Informs of Actions Being Taken by NRC to Provide Increased Regulatory Oversight of Plant Performance & Improvement Efforts

ML20137K196
Person / Time
Site:	Zion  File:ZionSolutions icon.png
Issue date:	03/14/1997
From:	Beach A NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION III)
To:	Mueller J COMMONWEALTH EDISON CO.
References
NUDOCS 9704040263
Download: ML20137K196 (4)

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+ 4 l March 14, 1997 1

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! Mr. J. H. Mueller l l Site Vice President .

! Zion Station

! Commonwealth Edison Company '

! 101 Shiloh Boulevard j Zion,IL 60099

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SUBJECT:

NRC OVERSIGHT EFFORTS REGARDING ZION GENERATING STATION

Dear Mr. Mueller:

This letter is to inform you of actions being taken by the NRC to provide increased regulatory oversight of Zion Generating Station performance and improvement efforts.

The cyclical safety performance of Commonwealth Edison nuclear stations is of concern to the Commission and the NRC staff. Zion Station was first placed on the NRC's watch list after the January 1991 NRC Senior " r=;= ment Meeting and remained on the list until January 1993. From August 1993 through January 1996, performance at Zion Station had no clear trend. Performance decreased in 1996, most notably in material condition, operator performance, and work control. Efforts to improve performance were not  :

successful. Based on continuing performance problems, with emphasis on the June to l December 1996 period, the NRC placed Zion Station back on the NRC's watch list in I January 1997. On February 21 during a unit shutdown evolution, a licensed operator withdrew control rods continuously in an attempt to take the reactor critical from a substantially shutdown condition. As a result, the NRC dispatched an Augmented Inspection Team (AIT) to the site to determine the facts related to this event. The AIT identified a number of significant performance deficiencies in the area of operations.

To address continuing performance deficiencies, Commonwealth Edison management contracted to have an independent Safety Assessment (ISA) conducted at Zion Station.

The ISA was conducted by a team of industry peers and institute of Nuclear Power Operations representatives. The ISA team's charter was to determine why previous improvement initiatives at Zion Station had not been successful, in December 1996, the team identified a number of reasons for historical performance problems that confirmed many of the performance deficiencies identified by the NRC. Zion Station management  ;

reviewed the ISA's findings and developed corrective actions.

To ensure close NRC oversight of Commonwealth Edison's actions to address performance issues, I have taken a number of steps, in consultation with the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, to enhance NRC monitoring of performance and assessment of corrective 1 action effectiveness at the Zion Station. Mr. Geoffrey Grant, Director of the Division of Reactor Safety, has been assigned as the NRC oversight manager for Zion Station and we have augmented the resident inspection staff by assigning an engineering inspector, Q

Mr. Zelig Falevits. Mr. Marc Depas will retain Division of floactor Projects branch chief (

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l J. MJeller i l responsibilities for Zion Station. In addition, an NRC performance improvement review

panel, consisting of regional and headquarters personnel, has boon established. The panel

! is responsible for reviewing information related to plant performance, responding to

{ emergent issues, and evaluating the effectiveness of Zion Station staff's corrective actions. A charter, outlining the review panel's functions and responsibilities, will be developed.

It is the NRC's intent to have the panel meet with Commonwealth Edison and plant management, as appropriate, at least once a month to discuss progress toward resolving performance deficiencies at Zion Station. The meetings, which will be open to the public, will be conducted in the Region 111 office and at a location near the site on an altemating basis.

The NRC may take other actions deemed necessary to ensure adequate NRC oversight of activities at Zion Generating Station. If you have any questions regarding the NRC actions discussed above, please contact Mr. Geoffrey Grant at 630/829-9700 or Mr. Marc Depas at 630/829-9628.

Sincerely,

/s/ A. B. Beach A. Bill Beach Regional Administrator Docket Nos. 50-295; 50-304 License Nos. DPR-39; DPR-48 PLEASE SEE ATTACHED CONCURRENCES DOCUMENT NAME: A:\ ZION.1 To receive a copy of this document, indicate in the box "C" = Copy without attach /enci "E" = Copy with attach /enci "N" = No copy OFFICE Rill Rlli Ph NAME Depas/co Grant Eh DATE 3/ /97 3/ /97 34497 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY

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r J.fWholler 2-actions. A charter, outlining the review panel's functions and responsibilities, will be developed.

It is the NRC's intent to have the panel meet with Commonwealth Edison and plant management, as appropriate, at least once a month to discuss progress toward resolving performance deficiencies at Zion Station. The meetings, which will be open to the public, will be conducted in the Region lli office and at a location near the site on an alternating basis. '

The NRC may take other actions deemed necessary to ensure adequate NRC oversight of activities at Zion Generating Station. If you have any questions regarding the NRC actions  ;

discussed above, please contact Mr. Geoffrey Grant at 630/829-9700 or Mr. Marc Depas i at 630/829-9628.

Sincerely, i

A. Bill Beach Regional Administrator Docket Nos. 50-295; 50-304 License Nos. DPR-39; DPR-48 t

DOCUMENT NAME: A:\ ZION.1 l To receive a copy of this document, indicate in the box "C" = Copy without attach /enci "E" = Copy with attach / encl "N" = No copy OFFICE Rill [ R_Ill Rlli NAME Dapas/co M Granth, Beach DATE 3////97 34219 [) [ 3/ /97 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY l

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J. Nbeller ,

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T. J. Maiman, Senior Vice President Nuclear Operations Division D. A. Sager, Vice President,  !

I Generation Support H. W. Keiser, Chief Nuclear Operating Officer l

R. Starkey, Plant General Manager l R. Godley, Regulatory Assurance l Supervisor

1. Johnson, Acting Nuclear Regulatory Services Manager ,

J Richard Hubbard l

, Nathan Schloss, Economist

] Office of the Attorney General Mayor, City of Zion State Liaison Officer, Wisconsin 4

State Liaison Officer Chairman, Illinois Commerce Commission Document Control Desk-Licensing l Distribution:

1 Docket File Project Manager, NRR PUBLIC IE-01 DRP '

OC/LFDCB Rlli PRR

] SRI Byron, Braidwood, CAA1 (E-mail)

Zion , Deputy RA A. B. Beach RAC1 (E-Mail)

! Rlli Enf. Coordinator DRS (3) i i TSS 1

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