ML20281A562
| ML20281A562 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Watts Bar  (NPF-090, NPF-096) |
| Issue date: | 10/06/2020 |
| From: | Gerald Mccoy Division of Reactor Safety II |
| To: | Anthony Williams Tennessee Valley Authority |
| References | |
| 50-390/20-301, 50-391/20-301 50-390/OL-20, 50-391/OL-20 | |
| Download: ML20281A562 (9) | |
See also: IR 05000390/2020301
Text
October 06, 2020
Mr. Anthony L. Williams, IV
Site Vice President
Watts Bar Nuclear Plant
Tennessee Valley Authority
P.O. Box 2000, ADM 1V-WBN
Spring City, TN 37381
SUBJECT:
WATTS BAR NUCLEAR PLANT - NRC OPERATOR LICENSE
EXAMINATION REPORT 05000390/2020301 AND 05000391/2020301
Dear Mr. Williams:
During the period August 24 - September 1, 2020, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
administered operating tests to employees of your company who had applied for licenses to
operate the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant. At the conclusion of the tests, the examiners discussed
preliminary findings related to the operating tests and the written examination submittal with
those members of your staff identified in the enclosed report. The written examination was
administered by your staff on September 3, 2020.
Thirteen Senior Reactor Operator (SRO) applicants passed both the operating test and written
examination. There were no post-examination comments concerning the operating test.
Simulator Fidelity Report is included in this report as Enclosure 3.
The initial examination submittal was within the range of acceptability expected for a proposed
examination. All examination changes agreed upon between the NRC and your staff were
made according to NUREG-1021, Operator Licensing Examination Standards for Power
Reactors, Revision 11.
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390 of the NRCs Rules of Practice, a copy of this letter and its
enclosures will be available electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document
Room or from the Publicly Available Records (PARS) component of the NRCs document
system (ADAMS). ADAMS is accessible from the NRC Website at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-
rm/adams.html (the Public Electronic Reading Room).
A. Williams
2
If you have any questions concerning this letter, please contact me at (404) 997-4551.
Sincerely,
/RA/
Gerald J. McCoy, Chief
Operations Branch 1
Division of Reactor Safety
Docket Nos: 50-390, 50-391
Enclosures:
1. Report Details
2. Simulator Fidelity Report
cc: Distribution via Listserv
SUNSI REVIEW COMPLETE
FORM 665 ATTACHED
OFFICE
RII:DRS/OB1
RII:DRS/OB1
NAME
DDUMBACHER
GMCCOY
DATE
10/ 6 /2020
10/ 6 /2019
E-MAIL COPY?
YES
NO
YES
NO
Enclosure 1
U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
REGION II
Examination Report
Docket No.:
05000390, 05000391
License No.:
Report No.:
05000390/2020301 and 05000391/2020301
EPID No.:
Licensee:
Tennessee Valley Authority
Facility:
Watts Bar Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2
Location:
Spring City, TN
Dates:
Operating Test - August 24 -September 1, 2020
Written Examination - September 3, 2020
Examiners:
D. Dumbacher, Chief Examiner, Senior Operations Engineer
M. Meeks, Senior Operations Engineer
A. Goldau, Operations Engineer
M. Donithan, Operations Engineer
Approved by:
Gerald J. McCoy, Chief
Operations Branch 1
Division of Reactor Safety
2
SUMMARY
ER 05000390/2020301 and 05000391/2020301; operating test August 24 - September 1, 2020
& written exam September 3, 2020; Watts Bar Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2; Operator License
Examinations.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) examiners conducted an initial examination in
accordance with the guidelines in Revision 11 of NUREG-1021, "Operator Licensing
Examination Standards for Power Reactors." This examination implemented the operator
licensing requirements identified in 10 CFR §55.41, §55.43, and §55.45, as applicable.
Members of the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant staff developed both the operating test and the written
examination. The initial operating test, written Reactor Operator (RO) examination, and written
Senior Reactor Operator (SRO) examination submittals met the quality guidelines contained in
The NRC administered the operating tests during the period of August 24 - September 1, 2020.
Members of the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant training staff administered the written examination on
September 3, 2020. Thirteen SRO applicants passed both the operating test and written
examination. Eight applicants were issued licenses commensurate with the level of examination
administered on September 30, 2020. Although the other five applicants passed their
examinations, the associated licenses will not be issued until Watts Bar notifies the NRC in
writing that all deferred requirements have been met.
There were no post-examination comments.
No findings were identified.
3
REPORT DETAILS
3.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
4OA5 Operator Licensing Examinations
a.
Inspection Scope
The NRC evaluated the submitted operating test by combining the scenario events and job
performance measures (JPMs) in order to determine the percentage of submitted test items
that required replacement or significant modification. The NRC also evaluated the submitted
written examination questions (RO and SRO questions considered separately) in order to
determine the percentage of submitted questions that required replacement or significant
modification, or that clearly did not conform with the intent of the approved knowledge and
ability (K/A) statement. Any questions that were deleted during the grading process, or for
which the answer key had to be changed, were also included in the count of unacceptable
questions. The percentage of submitted test items that were unacceptable was compared to
the acceptance criteria of NUREG-1021, Operator Licensing Standards for Power
Reactors.
The NRC reviewed the licensees examination security measures while preparing and
administering the examinations in order to ensure compliance with 10 CFR §55.49, Integrity
of examinations and tests.
The NRC administered the operating tests during the period August 24 - September 1,
2020. NRC examiners evaluated thirteen SRO applicants using the guidelines contained in
NUREG-1021. Members of the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant training staff administered the
written examination on September 3, 2020. Evaluations of applicants and reviews of
associated documentation were performed to determine if the applicants, who applied for
licenses to operate the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant, met the requirements specified in 10 CFR
Part 55, Operators Licenses.
The NRC evaluated the performance or fidelity of the simulation facility during the
preparation and conduct of the operating tests.
b.
Findings
No findings were identified.
The NRC developed the written examination sample plan outline. Members of the Watts Bar
Nuclear Plant training staff developed both the operating test and the written examination. All
examination material was developed in accordance with the guidelines contained in Revision
11 of NUREG-1021. The NRC examination team reviewed the proposed examination.
Examination changes agreed upon between the NRC and the licensee were made per
NUREG-1021 and incorporated into the final version of the examination materials.
The NRC determined that the licensees written examination and operating test submittals
were within the range of acceptable quality for a proposed examination specified by NUREG-
1021.
4
No issues related to examination security were identified during preparation and
administration of the examination.
All applicants passed both the operating test and written examination and on
September 30, 2020, eight of the applicants were issued licenses. Although the other
five applicants passed their examinations, the associated licenses will not be issued
until Watts Bar notifies the NRC in writing that all deferred requirements have been
met.
Copies of all individual examination reports were sent to the facility Training Manager
for evaluation of weaknesses and determination of appropriate remedial training.
The licensee submitted no post-examination comments. A copy of the final written RO
and SRO examinations and answer key may be accessed not earlier than October 2,
2022 in the ADAMS system (ADAMS Accession Numbers ML20276A151 and
4OA6 Meetings, Including Exit
Exit Meeting Summary
On August 28, 2020 the NRC examination team discussed generic issues associated
with the operating test with A. Williams, Site Vice President, and members of the Watts
Bar Nuclear Plant staff. The examiners asked the licensee if any of the examination
material was proprietary. No proprietary information was identified.
KEY POINTS OF CONTACT
Licensee personnel
Williams, Anthony -
WBN Site Vice President
Rice, Christopher -
WBN Director of Nuclear Plant Operations
McMullin, Matthew -
WBN Director of Nuclear Training
McIlnay, Brian S -
WBN Facility Representative / Shift Manager
Joplin, Russell Wayne -
Program Manager, Corporate Nuclear Exams
Williams, Pedro Arthur Jr - WBN Operations Training Liaison / Shift Manager
Deschaine, Wesley David - NRC Senior Resident
O'Brien, Patrick Clinton - WBN Initial License Training Supervisor
Gabosch, Timothy -
WBN Exam Project Manager
Enclosure 2
SIMULATOR FIDELITY REPORT
Facility Licensee: Watts Bar Nuclear Plant
Facility Docket No.: 050000390 and 050000391
Operating Test Administered: August 24 -September 1, 2020
This form is to be used only to report observations. These observations do not constitute audit
or inspection findings and, without further verification and review in accordance with Inspection
Procedure 71111.11 are not indicative of noncompliance with 10 CFR 55.46. No licensee
action is required in response to these observations.
One simulator fidelity and two configuration issues were identified.
One simulator fidelity issue arose when the simulator ICS computer crashed.
This caused the plant computer on the simulator to go down for the course of the scenario.
The scenario was completed without the use of ICS. The licensee stated that the cause was
indeterminate. Condition Report 1641066 was written to capture and correct the issue.
The first configuration issue was that JPM B Initial Condition (IC) was found to have had an error
in the code. CR 1638012 was generated to address the issue. With the malfunction
inserted, break flow goes to 0 after soon after going to run. There was an error introduced during
IC construction that wasn't observed during validation due to the shorter run time but became
readily apparent during the examination. All simulator Instructor Station indications were that the
malfunction was inserted. The IC for JPM B has been repaired.
The second configuration issue was related to a JPM where a lockout relay indicating light was lit
during validation but initially, for the first applicant, was not. This setup issue was corrected for
the remaining applicants and did not affect the JPM result for the affected applicant.