ML23284A429
| ML23284A429 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 10/13/2023 |
| From: | Laura Dudes Region 2 Administrator |
| To: | Schlueter J Nuclear Energy Institute |
| References | |
| Download: ML23284A429 (7) | |
Text
1 Janet R. Schlueter Senior Advisor, Fuel and Radiation Safety Nuclear Energy Institute 1201 F Street, NW, Suite 1100 Washington, DC 20004
SUBJECT:
RESPONSE TO NUCLEAR ENERGY INSTITUTE LETTER REGARDING THE FUEL FACILITIES CONSTRUCTION OVERSIGHT WORKSHOP AND RECOMMENDED FUTURE PUBLIC DISCUSSIONS
Dear Janet Schlueter:
The Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) submitted a letter to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) dated August 24, 2023, (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML23236A499) providing feedback on the Construction Oversight Workshop public meeting held in the Region II office on August 15, 2023. In the letter, NEI requested additional discussions on specific topics regarding NRCs construction oversight process for current or future fuel cycle facilities licensed under 10 CFR Part 70.
The NRC staff appreciates your feedback on the Construction Oversight Workshop. External stakeholder feedback and input is important to create a transparent dialogue on future oversight activities.
As discussed at the Construction Oversight Workshop, the staff is revising current inspection program guidance to be the most effective and risk informed for the new activities the fuel facility industry is undertaking. This is in direct response to industrys plans to construct new fuel fabrication facilities and does not represent a new or expanded oversight program. This activity continues the philosophy of the Smarter Inspection Program of focusing inspection activities on areas that provide the greatest safety benefit while considering the lower risk profile of the fuel facilities. These revisions will also provide additional efficiencies and allow for a more transparent construction inspection program.
As construction and modification activities increase for the fuel facility industry in support of new advanced reactor technologies, we want to ensure that the inspection program and oversight process remains agile, scalable, and flexible.
We look forward to discussing topics related to the fuel facility oversight process in future public meetings. This letter and enclosure respond to your letter requesting specific topics of discussion.
October 13, 2023
J. Schlueter 2
2 If you have further questions, please contact Nicole Coovert of my staff. She can be reached at 404-997-4510 or Nicole.Coovert@nrc.gov.
Sincerely, Laura A. Dudes Regional Administrator Region II
Enclosure:
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Staff Response to Nuclear Energy Institute Letter Dated August 24, 2023 Franke, Mark signing on behalf of Dudes, Laura on 10/13/23
ML23284A429 OFFICE RII/DCO RII:DCO RII/ORA/RA NAME N. Coovert O. Lopez L. Dudes (MFF for)
DATE 10/12/2023 10/12/2023 10/13/2023
2 NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION STAFF RESPONSE TO NUCLEAR ENERGY INSTITUTE LETTER DATED AUGUST 24, 2023 Summary of Prior Engagements On August 15, 2023, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) conducted a Construction Oversight Workshop public meeting with representatives of the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI),
licensees in the fuel facility industry, applicants for licenses under 10 CFR Part 70, and members of the public. Additionally, on May 3, 2023, the NRC conducted a fuel facility stakeholder public meeting. During both meetings, staff discussed the proposed revisions to the construction inspection program for fuel cycle facilities. Specifically for the August workshop, topics included lessons learned from other nuclear construction projects, proposed characterization of potential findings, and conduct of readiness reviews prior to the authorization to possess special nuclear material. The workshop included presentations on inspection sample selection using a risk-ranking methodology, applicability of management measures during preconstruction, construction, and pre-operations phases, and risks of construction prior to the issuance of a license. The public meeting notices with the agenda, the meeting presentations, and meeting summaries are available in the Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) under Accession Numbers: ML23116A205, ML23116A189, ML23116A190, ML23114A140, and ML23114A141, ML23114A142, and ML23153A158 for the May public meeting, and ML23220A428, ML23219A025, ML23214A377, ML23219A026, ML23219A027, ML23219A028, ML23219A024, ML23219A029, ML23219A030, and ML23234A129 for the August meeting.
Stemming from the recent August meeting, the NRC committed to ongoing discussions related to fuel facility construction inspection program development via additional public meetings and during the next public Fuel Facilities Stakeholder Meeting, scheduled on November 8, 2023.
From this meeting, the NRC has broadly captured the following action items that will be addressed in subsequent meetings:
Clarify the applicability of the Construction Inspection Program (Inspection Manual Chapter (IMC) 2694, Fuel Cycle Facility Construction and Pre-Operational Readiness Review Inspection Program,) for existing licensees undergoing construction.
Provide resource estimate(s) for licensee/applicant budgeting purposes for construction oversight.
Engage in public meetings to work through examples, questions, and inspection scenarios with licensees, applicants, and the public.
Clarify the scope of inspections for licensee/applicant structures that are not designated as items relied on for safety (IROFS).
Engage in further discussion on procurement inspection, quality control inspection, and acceptance criteria for commercial items used in IROFS.
On August 24, 2023, the NEI submitted a letter titled Industry Feedback on Region II Fuel Cycle Facility Construction Oversight Workshop held August 15, 2023, and Suggested Topics for Additional Public Meetings in Fall 2023, to the NRC (ADAMS No. ML23236A499), which outlined NEIs feedback on the Construction Oversight Workshop public meeting and requested additional discussions on specific topics regarding the NRCs construction oversight process for current and future fuel cycle facilities licensed under 10 CFR Part 70.
3 Letter Response This enclosure serves as the NRCs response to NEIs August 24, 2023, letter titled Industry Feedback on Region II Fuel Cycle Facility Construction Oversight Workshop held August 15, 2023, and Suggested Topics for Additional Public Meetings in Fall 2023 (ADAMS No.
ML23236A499). The responses are associated with each letter section and are listed in order as they appear in the letter.
NRC Staff Response for Section Two General Comments: The NRC agrees that fuel facilities have a lower risk profile than operating nuclear power plants, and our intention is to ensure the inspection programs for fuel facilities, both for operating and new construction, are risk-informed and commensurate with the safety significance of the facility.
The staff is carrying forward the oversight philosophy of the Smarter Inspection Program1 as the NRC assesses needed revisions to IMCs and the associated inspection procedures (IPs). The revisions being considered for IMC 2694, IMC 2600, Fuel Cycle Facility Operational Safety and Safeguards Inspection Program, and the associated IPs are not an expansion of the NRCs construction oversight program. Rather, the revisions are clarifications that will enhance efficiency and effectiveness and allow for a more transparent construction inspection program.
The NRC fuel facility oversight budget includes routine program management, which includes updates to IMCs and IPs. The updates NRC discussed at the August 9, 2023, Construction Oversight Workshop were included in the NRC's baseline fuel facility program management budget. These activities are funded through 10 CFR Part 171 fees (annual fees) and are not direct fee-billable to a specific licensee or applicant. The NRC plans to complete the revisions in the first quarter of calendar year 2024.
NRC Response to Five Suggested Topics for Future Construction Oversight Meeting:
NEI requested continued dialogue for five specific topics. The topics were (1) Scope of Construction Oversight Program, (2) Define Modifications [verses] Construction [verses] At-risk Construction, (3) Construction Oversight of Buildings, (4) NRC Findings During Construction, and (5) Budget-Related Issues.
NRC Staff Response for Topic 1, Scope of Construction Oversight Program: The NRC agrees the scope of the construction inspection program is a topic that should be discussed at a near-term public meeting. Staff also acknowledges there is a rigorous licensing process that requires facility-specific Integrated Safety Analysis. The staff continues to implement a risk-informed inspection philosophy that prioritizes inspection activities commensurate with their importance to safety and the lower risk profile of the fuel facilities, and to verify that facilities are constructed and operated in accordance with their licensing bases requirements.
NRC Staff Response for Topic 2, Define Modifications [verses] Construction [verses] At-risk Construction: Staff agrees that further discussion on this topic is needed at a near-term public meeting. Although these are not new terms, and some are already defined in the regulations, staff believes it would be helpful to clarify the application of those terms to licensees and applicants in IMC 2600 and IMC 2694, to ensure consistency in the NRCs inspection program application and to add additional transparency to our oversight process. Staff also 1 The Smarter Inspection Program was an NRC effort initiated in 2019 to refocus some inspection activities on areas that provide the greatest safety benefit while maintaining an effective fuel cycle oversight program.
4 acknowledges that more discussions are warranted regarding the inspection program for applicants and existing licensees. Considering the different technologies, both existing licensees and new applicants have the potential of constructing the same type of production facility, and as a result, may have the same or similar regulatory requirements and risk profiles.
NRC Staff Response for Topic 3, Construction Oversight of Buildings: Staff acknowledges the concerns regarding construction oversight of buildings and agrees that this topic needs further discussion at a future public meeting. The regulatory basis supporting the NRC inspection of buildings that are not IROFS is established by 10 CFR 70.64, Requirements for new facilities or new processes at existing facilities, and licensing basis requirements, as applicable. The extent to which staff conducts these inspections will continue to be assessed utilizing a risk-informed inspection philosophy when verifying compliance with these requirements.
NRC Staff Response for Topic 4, NRC Findings During Construction: Staff agrees that clarification is needed and continued engagement will be beneficial to finalize this process. The process and terminology will be discussed at a future public meeting. The proposed characterization of the use of potential findings was discussed at the Construction Oversight Workshop as a mechanism to track issues identified during construction inspections, in a consistent, auditable, and transparent means, for issues that would not meet future license commitments or regulatory requirements.
Staff agrees that findings should be tracked and are assessing the most effective approach for performing this action. This would be made publicly available through inspection reports and will allow for transparency to the licensee/applicant and external stakeholders. Staff also agrees that timely and transparent communication of licensing and inspection issues, with clear nexus to safety, is paramount to ensure that mutual resources are expended on the most safety significant issues.
NRC Staff Response for Topic 5, Budget-Related Issues: Staff agrees this topic warrants further discussion at a near-term public meeting. Budget and hours for the inspection program maintenance, along with the development of Category II fuel facility inspection program, is being performed under the existing fiscal year (FY) 2023 budget. The program maintenance initiative is expected to be complete in the first quarter of calendar year 2024. These activities are funded through 10 CFR Part 171 fees (annual fees) and are not direct fee-billable to a specific licensee or applicant.
The scope and number of inspection hours for new construction or modifications would be risk-informed, dependent upon the complexity of the construction project, and based upon several factors, such as proposed design and the risks associated with the processes to be performed at that facility. Because construction projects will differ, the staff would estimate inspection hours on a case-by-case basis.
At the August 2023 Construction Oversight Workshop, staff discussed the IROFS risk-ranking tool, which is an inspection planning tool that was developed to provide staff insights for prioritizing IROFS inspections in new fuel facilities under construction. This process uses the same fundamental methodology for inspection prioritization used for previous construction projects with incorporated lessons learned. The NRCs expenditures to date for the development of the IROFS prioritization tool is 326.75 hours8.680556e-4 days <br />0.0208 hours <br />1.240079e-4 weeks <br />2.85375e-5 months <br />, with an approximate remaining 40 hours4.62963e-4 days <br />0.0111 hours <br />6.613757e-5 weeks <br />1.522e-5 months <br /> to complete. The risk-ranking tool will help to focus NRC inspections on the most safety significant aspects of construction. The use of the tool in combination with bundling of samples
5 and reducing overlaps will ultimately support lower inspection resources needed to complete a construction inspection program.
NRC Staff Response for the Closing Paragraph: When determining the need for resident inspectors during construction and operations phases, staff continues to follow the guidance in IMC 2600, which states that resident inspectors are assigned to certain fuel cycle facilities that require such oversight because of their complexity of operation, risk, or other significant factors.
Given the variations between facilities, (i.e., enrichment level, size of facility, processes of facility, etc.), the staff plans to evaluate, on a case-by-case basis, the need, if applicable, to place a resident inspector at a fuel cycle facility during construction or operation activities. Staff plans to engage in additional outreach with licensees once that decision is done.