ML23292A253

BFN 2024-301, Corporate Notification Letter (210-day Ltr)

ML23292A253
Person / Time
Site:	Browns Ferry
Issue date:	10/18/2023
From:	Tom Stephen Division of Reactor Safety II
To:	Jim Barstow Tennessee Valley Authority
References
Download: ML23292A253 (1)

Text

October 18, 2023 Mr. James Barstow Vice President, Nuclear Regulatory Affairs and Support Services Tennessee Valley Authority 1101 Market Street, LP 4A-C Chattanooga, TN 37402-2801

SUBJECT:

BROWNS FERRY NUCLEAR PLANT - NOTIFICATION OF LICENSED OPERATOR INITIAL EXAMINATION 05000259/2024301, 05000260/2024301, 05000296/2024301

Dear Mr. Barstow:

In a telephone conversation on 18 October 2023, between Mr. Michael Schulte, Examination Team Supervisor and Mr. Joseph Viera, Senior Operations Engineer, arrangements were made for the administration of operator licensing examinations at Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant. The on-site preparatory week is scheduled for the week of 15 April 2024. The operating test is scheduled to be administered during the week of 20 May 2024, and, if necessary, the week of 27 May 2024. The written examination is scheduled to be administered the week of 27 May 2024.

As agreed during the telephone conversation, your staff will prepare both the operating test and written examination based on the guidelines in Revision 12 of NUREG-1021, "Operator Licensing Examination Standards for Power Reactors." The NRCs regional office will discuss with your staff any changes that might be necessary before the examinations are administered.

To meet the above schedule, it will be necessary for your staff to furnish the operating test outline by 22 December 2023. Mr. Viera provided the written examination outline to your staff in July 2023. The written examinations, operating tests, and supporting reference materials identified in NUREG-1021, Examination Standard (ES)-2.1, Preparing for Operator Licensing Initial Examinations, will be due by 6 March 2024. Pursuant to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) 55.40(b)(3), an authorized representative of the facility licensee shall approve the examinations and tests before they are submitted to the NRC for review and approval. All materials shall be complete and ready-to-use.

We request that any personal, proprietary, sensitive unclassified, or safeguards information in your response be contained in a separate enclosure and appropriately marked. Delays in receiving the required examination and reference materials, or the submittal of inadequate or incomplete materials, may cause the examinations to be cancelled or rescheduled.

To conduct the requested written examinations and operating tests, it will be necessary for your staff to provide adequate space and accommodations in accordance with ES-4.3, Administering Written Examinations, and to make the simulation facility available on the dates noted above. In accordance with ES-3.5, Administering Operating Tests, your staff should retain the original simulator performance data (e.g., system pressures, temperatures, and

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levels) generated during the dynamic operating tests until the NRC takes licensing action on all the applications and any adjudicatory actions on any hearing demands are complete.

ES-1.2, Guidelines for Taking NRC Examinations, contains a number of NRC guidelines for the written examinations and operating tests as they are being administered. Your staff has also agreed to make copies of all examination materials that are necessary for administering the examination.

To permit timely NRC review and evaluation, your staff should submit preliminary reactor operator and senior reactor operator waiver and/or excusal requests (if any) (Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number 3150-0090) at least 60 days before the first examination date (if possible). Contact Mr. Viera to determine the method for submission of the waiver or excusal requests. Preliminary reactor operator and senior reactor operator license applications (OMB control number 3150-0090) and medical certifications (OMB control number 3150-0024) should be submitted at least 30 days before the first examination date. If the NRC does not receive the preliminary applications at least 30 days before the examination date, a postponement may be necessary. Final, signed applications certifying that all training has been completed and requesting any waivers or excusals, as applicable, should be submitted at least 14 days before the first examination date.

Although the guidelines for waiver or excusal requests call for their receipt at least 30 days before the first examination date (preliminary) and 14 days before the first examination date (final), the requests should be submitted as early as possible in the process (see the 60-day guideline above). Resolutions resulting from verbal inquiries by the facility licensee to the NRC are not binding. Submittals addressing waivers or excusals, or both, should be in writing (i.e.,

using NRC Form 398, Personal Qualifications StatementLicensee, or as directed by Mr.

Viera when contacting him to determine the method for submission). The NRC will document its final decision on whether to grant a waiver or excusal on the final (not preliminary) NRC Form 398 submitted for the applicant. The NRC will not provide its decision until the final application is submitted to the agency.

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement This letter contains information collection requirements that are subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). These information collections were approved by the OMB, approval number 3150-0018.

The burden to the public for these voluntary information collections is estimated to average 2,250 hours0.00289 days <br />0.0694 hours <br />4.133598e-4 weeks <br />9.5125e-5 months <br /> per examination or response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the information collections. Send comments regarding this information collection to the FOIA, Library, and Information Collections Branch (T6-A10M), U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555 0001, or by e-mail to Infocollects.Resource@nrc.gov, and to the OMB reviewer at: OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (3150-0018), Attn: Desk Officer for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 725 17th Street, NW Washington, DC 20503; e-mail: oira_submission@omb.eop.gov.

Public Protection Notification The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information, unless the document requesting or requiring the collection displays a currently valid OMB control number.

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In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390, Public inspections, exemptions, requests for withholding, a copy of this letter and its enclosures will be available electronically for public inspection through the NRCs Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS). ADAMS is accessible on the NRCs Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html.

Thank you for your cooperation in this matter. Mr. Schulte has been advised of the policies and guidelines referenced in this letter. If you have any questions about the NRC's examination procedures and guidelines, please contact Mr. Viera at (404) 997-4643, (Internet E-mail:

Joseph.Viera@nrc.gov), or me at (404) 997-4703, (Internet E-mail: Thomas.Stephen@nrc.gov).

Sincerely,

/RA/

Thomas A. Stephen, Chief Operations Branch 1 Division of Reactor Safety Docket Nos.: 50-259, 50-260, 50-296 License Nos.: DPR-33, DPR-52, DPR-68

SUNSI REVIEW COMPLETE FORM 665 ATTACHED OFFICE RII/DRS/OB RII/DRS/OB RII/DRS/OB NAME DEgelstad JViera TStephen DATE 10/18 /2023 10/18 /2023 10/18 /2023