ML24221A013

July 10, 2024, Summary of Meeting with Tennessee Valley Authority Regarding a Proposed Change to the Tennessee Valley Authority Nuclear Quality Assurance Plan

ML24221A013
Person / Time
Site:	Browns Ferry, Watts Bar, Sequoyah, 99902056
Issue date:	08/19/2024
From:	Kimberly Green Plant Licensing Branch II
To:
Green K
References
EPID L 20243 LLQ 0000
Download: ML24221A013 (1)

Text

August 19, 2024

LICENSEE: Tennessee Valley Authority

FACILITY: Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant, Units 1, 2, and 3 Sequoyah Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2 Watts Bar Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2 Clinch River Nuclear Site

SUMMARY

OF JULY 10, 2024, MEETING WITH TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY REGARDING A PROPOSED CHANGE TO THE TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY NUCLEAR QUALITY ASSURANCE PLAN (EPID L-2024-LLQ-0000)

On July 10, 2024, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff conducted an observation meeting with representatives of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). The meeting notice and agenda, dated June 24, 2024, are available at Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML24176A153. The NRC staffs presentation slides for the meeting are available at ADAMS Accession No. ML24184B916. A list of participants is enclosed.

By letter dated April 1, 2024 (ML24093A047), TVA submitted a request to the NRC to convert the format of its Quality Assurance Program Description (QAPD) for the current operating fleet (i.e., TVA NQA-PLN89-A, Revision 43, Quality Assurance Program Description for TVA Nuclear) to American Society of Mec hanical Engineers (ASME) NQA-1-2015, Quality Assurance Requirements for Nuclear Facility Applications. During the NRC staffs review, the staff identified apparent discrepancies in statements between the TVA fleet QAPD and the QAPD for TVA New Nuclear (i.e., NNP-TR-001-NP, Revision 2, Quality Assurance Program Description for Tennessee Valley Authority New Nuclear (ML24037A144)). The NRC staff requested a public meeting with TVA to obtain clarification regarding the scope of the TVA fleet QAPD and the scope of the TVA New Nuclear QAPD.

The NRC staff briefly described the TVA Fleet QAPD and noted that it applies to the TVA New Nuclear Program, which addresses infrastructure and programmatic matters with siting, licensing, and planning for new nuclear projects. The TVA Fleet QAPD notes that site-selection, design, construction, and operation of new TVA nuclear plants, including the Clinch River Nuclear Small Modular Reactor Project (CRN SMR) after issuance of the Construction Permit, are addressed under the TVA New Nuclear QA Program Description. The TVA New Nuclear QAPD provides a description of the TVA New Nuclear QA program for the site -selection, design, construction, and operation of nuclear plant(s) at multiple sites and projects. The New Nuclear QAPD also describes the TVA Nuclear organization which comprises two groupsthe New Nuclear Program group and the New Nuclear Projects group. The staff noted that New Nuclear Program group addresses site characterization, advanced design engineering, fabrication licensing, supply chain, and planning for multiple new nuclear projects across multiple sites, and the New Nuclear Projects group supports engineering, procurement, construction, startup, and operational development of specific projects at designated sites.

Based on the NRC staffs initial review of the TVA fleet QAPD and the staffs previous review of the TVA New Nuclear QAPD, the staff posed questions to TVA:

1. Does the TVA New Nuclear QAPD or QAPD for TVA Nuclear govern the activities performed by TVA New Nuclear Programs?

In response, TVA explained that the TVA New Nuclear organization is divided into two groups: New Nuclear Program group and New Nuclear Projects group. The New Nuclear Program group addresses programmatic matters with siting, licensing, and planning for multiple new nuclear projects across multiple sites, and operates under the oversight of the General Manager, Quality Assurance and will be governed by the TVA Fleet QAPD.

The New Nuclear Projects group supports the engineering, procurement, construction, startup, and operational development activities of specific projects at designated sites, and operates under the oversight of the General Manager, New Nuclear Projects Quality Assurance and will be governed by the TVA New Nuclear QAPD. TVA referred the staff to statements made in the TVA New Nuclear QAPD on pages 11, 12, and 18. TVA clarified that the functions of the General Manager for New Nuclear will be under the TVA Fleet QAPD, and that it can clarify the distinction in a supplement.

The NRC staff noted that the QA Manager functions and roles in the two QAPDs do not seem to line up (TVA Fleet QAPD, page 15 vs. TVA New Nuclear QAPD, Section 1.2.2).

In addition, because the safety evaluation for the TVA New Nuclear included plant-specific action items (PSAIs) regarding the or ganizational structure of TVA New Nuclear, if the New Nuclear Programs group governed by the TVA Fleet QAPD, the NRC staff may need to include the same PSAIs in the TVA Fleet QAPD.

2. What is meant by statement in both QAPDs and operation of nuclear plant(s) at multiple sites? Could TVA clarify what is meant by new in New Nuclear?

TVA stated the application of the CRN SMR construction permit will fall under that TVA Fleet QAPD.

3. What aspects of licensing for New Nuclear will be covered by the two QAPDs during the transition and what will the transitions look like?

TVA stated that it will submit a supplement to the TVA Fleet QAPD request that will address the timing aspects of which QAPD would be governing New Nuclear Program and New Nuclear Project activities.

No regulatory decisions were made at this meeting.

Please direct any inquiries to me at 301-415-1627 or by e-mail to Kimberly.Green@nrc.gov.

/RA/

Kimberly J. Green, Senior Project Manager Plant Licensing Branch II-2 Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Docket Nos. 50-259, 50-260, 50-296 50-327, 50-328 50-390, 50-391 99902056

Enclosure:

List of Participants

cc: Listserv

Package: ML24225A020 Meeting Summary: ML24221A013 Meeting Notice: ML24176A153 Meeting Slides: ML24184B916 OFFICE DORL/LPL2-2/PM DORL/LPL2-2/LA DORL/LPL2-2/BC DORL/LPL2-2/PM NAME KGreen ABaxter DWrona KGreen DATE 08/06/24 08/12/24 08/19/24 08/19/24 LIST OF PARTICIPANTS

JULY 10, 2024, PUBLIC MEETING WITH TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY

REGARDING PROPOSED CHANGE TO TVA NUCLEAR QUALITY ASSURANCE PLAN

Name Affiliation

Kim Green U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)

Kerri Kavanagh NRC Deanna Zhang NRC Jim Gaslevic NRC Phil OBryan NRC Luis Colon Fuentes NRC Nicole Coovert NRC Anthony Ponko NRC George Khouri NRC

Shawna Hughes Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

Adrienne Hudson TVA Jamie Paul TVA Neel Shukla TVA Russ Wells TVA Chris Rice TVA Stephen Kimura TVA Gordon Williams TVA

Rob Burg Engineering Planning and Management, Inc. (EPM)

Vicken Khatchadourian EPM Richard Rogalski Energy Northwest David Restrepo Self Matthew Warren International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Jerry Bingaman State of Tennessee, Tennessee Department of Environment &

Conservation, Division of Radiological Health

Enclosure