ML25258A205
| ML25258A205 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Monticello  |
| Issue date: | 09/17/2025 |
| From: | Wetzel B Plant Licensing Branch III |
| To: | Hafen S Northern States Power Company, Minnesota |
| References | |
| EPID L-2025-LLE-0013 | |
| Download: ML25258A205 (1) | |
Text
September 17, 2025 Mr. Shawn Hafen Site Vice President Northern States Power Company
- Minnesota Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant 2807 West County Road 75 Monticello, MN 55362
SUBJECT:
MONTICELLO NUCLEAR GENERATING PLANT, UNIT 1 - CORRECTION TO EXEMPTION ISSUED FROM SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS OF 10 CFR 50.55a IN SUPPORT OF ADOPTION OF CODE CASE N-921 (EPID L-2025-LLE-0013)
Dear Mr. Hafen:
By letter dated September 4, 2025 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System Accession No. ML25231A222), the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued an exemption from specific requirements of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations Section 50.55a, Codes and standards, to allow the implementation of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Code Case N-921 after the start date of the sixth inservice inspection Program interval at Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant, Unit 1.
The NRC inadvertently issued the exemption with typographical errors. Specifically:
The acronym for Northern States Power Company, a Minnesota Corporation, was listed as NSPC and should be NSPM on pages 2 and 10 of the Exemption.
The acronym for Subsequent Renewed Facility Operating License (SRFOL) was mistakenly listed as plural.
The date of the start of the sixth interval was incorrectly given as June 21, 2023, and should read June 1, 2023.
The NRC staff has determined that these were inadvertent errors and are entirely editorial in nature. The corrections do not change any of the conclusions in the exemption dated September 4, 2025.
The corrected pages are enclosed and should be replaced as follows:
Remove Insert Exemption page 1 Exemption page 1 Exemption page 2 Exemption page 10 Exemption page 2 Exemption page 10
If you have any questions, please contact me at 301-415-5223 or via e-mail at Beth.Wetzel@nrc.gov.
Sincerely,
/RA/
Beth Wetzel, Project Manager Plant Licensing Branch III Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-263
Enclosure:
Exemption pages 1, 2 and 10 cc: Listserv
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Docket No. 50-263 Northern States Power Company, a Minnesota Corporation Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant, Unit 1 Exemption I. Background Northern States Power Company, a Minnesota Corporation (NSPM, the licensee) is the holder of the Subsequent Renewed Facility Operating License (SRFOL) No. DPR-22, for the Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant, Unit 1 (MNGP), which consists of one boiling water reactor (BWR) nuclear power plant located in Monticello, Minnesota. The SRFOL provides, among other things, that the facilities are subject to all rules, regulations, and orders of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission) now or hereafter in effect.
On July 17, 2024, the NRC issued a final rule incorporating by reference Regulatory Guide (RG) 1.147, Inservice Inspection Code Case Acceptability, ASME Section XI, Division 1, Revision 21, in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Section 50.55a, Codes and standards, paragraph(3)(ii) (89 FR 58039). This RG conditionally approved American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code,Section XI (ASME BPV XI) Code Case N-921, Alternative 12-yr Inspection Interval Duration. This code case allows NRC licensees to implement an inservice inspection (ISI) program based upon a 12-year ISI interval, as opposed to the traditional 10-year ISI interval required by ASME BPV XI, Paragraph IWA-2431. RG 1.147 Revision 21 specifies four conditions on Code Case N-921.
Condition 1 states, The licensees code of record for the ISI program must be the 2017 Edition of Section XI or later, in order to apply this code case. Condition 2 states, This code case can only be implemented at the beginning of an ISI interval as part of a routine update of the ISI program. The July 17, 2024, final rule also added 10 CFR 50.55a(y), which includes a definition
2 for the term inservice inspection interval. This definition specifies that the length of the ISI interval is defined in ASME BPV XI, Paragraph IWA-2431.
II. Request/Action.
By application dated April 4, 2025 (ML25097A091), the licensee, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, Specific exemptions, requested exemptions from certain requirements of 10 CFR 50.55a(a)(3)(ii) and 10 CFR 50.55a(y) to allow the use of Code Case N-921 after the start date of the sixth ISI interval at MNGP, which is not in accordance with Condition 2 on Code Case N-921, as specified in RG 1.147, Revision 21. The sixth ISI interval at MNGP began on June 1, 2023. The code of record for the MNGP sixth ISI interval is the 2019 Edition of the ASME Section XI, as incorporated by reference in 10 CFR 50.55a.
III. Discussion.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12(a), the Commission may, upon application by any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR part 50 when (1) the exemptions are authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to the public health and safety, and are consistent with the common defense and security and (2) special circumstances are present. Under 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2), special circumstances are present when at least one of the following five conditions are met:
(i)
Application of the regulation in the particular circumstances conflicts with other rules or requirements of the Commission; or (ii) Application of the regulation in the particular circumstances would not serve the underlying purpose of the rule or is not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule; or (iii) Compliance would result in undue hardship or other costs that are significantly in excess of those contemplated when the regulation was adopted, or that are significantly in excess of those incurred by others similarly situated; or (iv) The exemption would result in benefit to the public health and safety that compensates
10 Requirements in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(iv) - There is no significant construction impact.
Since the exemptions involve only an ISI program implementation change, which is administrative in nature, it does not involve any construction impact.
Requirements in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(v) - There is no significant increase in the potential for or consequences from radiological accidents.
The exemptions involve only an ISI program implementation change, which is administrative in nature and does not impact the potential for or consequences from accidents.
Requirements in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(I) - The requirements from which the exemption is sought involve requirements that are administrative in nature.
The exemptions involve only an ISI program implementation change regarding examination scheduling requirements and other requirements of an administrative, managerial, or organizational nature, because they are associated with the marginal extension from a 10-year to 12-year ISI interval.
Based on the above, NRC determined that the exemptions meet the eligibility criteria for the categorical exclusion set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25). Therefore, in accordance with 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared in connection with these exemption requests.
IV. Conclusions.
Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the exemption is authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to the public health and safety, and is consistent with the common defense and security. Also, special circumstances are present. Therefore, the Commission hereby grants NSPMs request for exemptions from
ML25258A205 NRR-106 OFFICE NRR/DORL/LPL3/PM NRR/DORL/LPL3/LA NRR/DORL/LPL3/BC (A)
NAME BWetzel SLent IBerrios DATE 09/16/2025 9/16/2025 09/16/2025 OFFICE NRR/DORL/LPL3/PM NAME BWetzel DATE 09/17/2025