ML20198H989

Order Approving Application Re Acquisition of Long Island Lighting Co by Long Island Power Authority.Orders That Commission Approves Application,Subj to Listed Conditions

ML20198H989
Person / Time
Site:	Nine Mile Point
Issue date:	12/29/1997
From:	Collins S NRC (Affiliation Not Assigned)
To:	NRC COMMISSION (OCM)
Shared Package
ML20198H980	List: ML20198H975 ML20198H989 ML20198H994
References
NUDOCS 9801140014
Download: ML20198H989 (5)

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA >

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NUCLEAR REGULATORY tom ISSION t

In the Matter of 1 h

LONG ISLAND LIGHTING COMPANY h Docket No. 50-410 h

(Nine Nile Point Nuclear Station i Unit No. 2) ,

h ORDER APPROVING APPLICATION REGARDING ACQUISITION OF LONG ISLAND LIGHTING COMPANY BY LONG ISLAND POWER AUTHORITY I.

Long Island Lighting Company (LILCO) is licensed by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) to own and possess an 18-percent interest in Nine Mile Point huclear Station, Unit 2 (NMP2), under Facility Operating License No. NPF-69, issued by the Commission on July 2, 1987. In addition to LILCO, the other owners who may possess, but not operate, NMP2 are New York State Electric & Gas Corporation with an 18-percent interest, Rochester Gas-and Electric Corporation with a 14-percent interest, and Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation with a 9-percent interest. Niagara Mohawk Power Company (NMPC) owns a 41-percent interest in NMP2, is authorized to act as agent for the other owners, and has exclusive responsibility and control over the operation and maintenance of NMP2. NMP2 is located in the town of Scriba, Oswego County, New York.

The Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) is a corporate municipal instrumentality of New York State, created by State legislation in 1986 with authority to acquire all or any part of LILCO's securities or assets.

ADOC 10 P PDR l

II.

Under cover of a letter dated September 8,1997, from its counsel, LILCO submitted an application for consent by the Commission, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.80, regarding two proposed restructuring actions, each of which would result in the indirect transfer of the operating license for NMP2 to the extent held by LILCO. LILCO revised the application on Octnbar 3,1997, such that the pending request for consent now involves only a proposed acquisition of LILCO by LIPA. LILCO modified and supplemented the application on November 7, 1997, to indicate that subsequent to the proposed acquisition hy LIPA, LILCO would provide notification to the NRC regarding any future transfer of significant LILCO assets.

According to the application, LIPA proposes to acquire LILCO by purchasing its stock through a cash merger, at a time when LILCO consists of its electric transmission and distribution system, its retail electric business, substantially all of its current electric regulatory assets, and its 18-percent share in NMP2. LILCO thereby would become a subsidiary of LIPA.

After this restructuring, LILCO would continue to exist as an " electric r

utility as defined in 10 CFR 50.2, providing the same electric utility services it did immediately preceding the restructuring. LILCO would continue to be a licensee of NMP2, and no direct transfer of the operating license or interests in the station would result from the proposed restructuring. The transaction would not involve any change to either the management organization or technical personnel of NMPC, which has exclusive responsibility under the operating licer.se for operating and maintaining NMP2, and which is not involved in the proposed restructuring.

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t Notice of this application for approval was published in the FEDERAL:

[REGISTERonNovember 7, 1997 (62 FR 60286), and an Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significknt Impact was published in the FEDERAL REGISTER on December 18, 1997 (62 FR 66400).

Under 10 CFR 50.80,. no license shall be transferceJ, directly or 4

indirectly, through transfer of control of the license, unless the Commission shall give its consent in writing. Upon review of the infomation submitted

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in the application of September 8.-as modified and supplemented by submittals ,

dated October 8 and November 7, 1997, the NRC staff has determined that the acquisition and restructuring of LILC0 as a subsidiary of LIPA will not affect the qualifications of LILCO as a holder of the license, and that the transfer of control of the license for NMP2, to the extent effected by the acquisition ,

and restructuring, is otherwise consistent with applicable previsions of law, )

regulations, and orders issued by the Commission, subject to the conditions set forth herein. These findings are supported by a safety evaluation dated December 29, 1997.

III.

' l Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 161b, 1611, 1610, and 184 of the '

Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 42 USC li 2201(b), 2201(1), 2201(o),

and 2234., and 10 CFR 50.80. IT IS HERE8Y ORDERED that the Consission approves the application regarding the proposed acquisition of LILC0 by LIPA, subject to the following: (1) LILC0 shall provide the Director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation a copy of any application, at the time it is filed, to transfer (excluding grants of security interests or liens) from LILCO to LIPA, or to any other affiliated company, facilities for the production, transmission, or distribution of electric energy having a depreciated book j

o-4 value exceeding 10 percent (10%) of LILCO's consolidated not utility plant, as recorded on LILCO's books of account, and (2) should the acquisition and restructuring of LILC0 by LIPA not he completed by December 31, 1998, this order shall become null and void, provided, however, on application and for j good cause shown, such date may be extended. l l

IV.

By February 5, 1998, any person adversely affected by this 0-der may file a request for a hearing with respect to issuance of the Order. Any person requesting a hearing shall set forth with particularity how that interest is adversely affected by this Order and shall address the criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.714(d).

If a hearing is to be held, the Comission will issue an Order designating the time and place of the hearing.

The issue to be considered at any such hearing shall be whether this Order should be sustained.

Any request for a hearing must be filed with the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Comission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, or may be delivered to 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Naryland, between 7:45 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. Federal workdays, by the above date. Copies should be also sent to the Office of the General Counsel, and to the Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, and to John D.

Leonard, Jr., Vice President Special Projects, Long Island Lighting Company, 1800 Old Walt Whitman Road, Melville, New York 11747.

For further details with respect to this Order, see the application for approval dated September 8,1997, as modified and supplemented by letters l

dated October 8 and November 7, 1997, which are available for public inspection-at_the Commission's Public Document Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street, NW., Washington, DC, and at the local public document room Ir,cated at the Reference and Documents Department, Penfield Library, State University of New York, Oswego, New York 13126.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY C0mtlSS10N m t ector Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 29th day of December 1997.

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