ML25349B322
| ML25349B322 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | 99902094 |
| Issue date: | 12/15/2025 |
| From: | Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML25349B320 | List: |
| References | |
| EPID L-2021-NFN-0002 | |
| Download: ML25349B322 (0) | |
Text
REGULATORY AUDIT PLAN FOR PRE-APPLICATION READINESS ASSESSMENT FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN HIGH-TEMPERATURE GAS-COOLED RESEARCH REACTOR CONSTRUCTION PERMIT APPLICATION (EPID: L-2021-NFN-0002)
APPLICANT INFORMATION Applicant:
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC)
Applicant Address:
Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering Talbot Laboratory, Room 111C, MC-234 104 South Wright St., Urbana, IL 61801 Plant Name:
UIUC KRONOS Micro-Modular Reactor (MMRTM) High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Research Reactor Project No.:
99902094
Background:
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) plans to construct the KRONOS MMRTM, designed by NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NANO), and has actively engaged in pre-application discussions with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff since 2021. Since then, UIUC has submitted various topical reports and white papers. In addition, on June 17, 2025, UIUC submitted a revised regulatory engagement plan (REP) (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Package Accession No. ML25174A166). As discussed in the REP, UIUC plans to submit an application for a construction permit (CP), including a preliminary safety analysis report (PSAR) for the MMRTM, in accordance with Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, Domestic licensing of production and utilization facilities. UIUC plans to prepare the PSAR in accordance with the guidance in NUREG-1537, Part 1, Guidelines for Preparing and Reviewing Applications for the Licensing of Non-Power Reactors, Format and Content (ML042430055).
Purpose:
UIUC requested this audit by e-mail dated December 1, 2025 (ML25339A072). The purpose of the audit is to provide the NRC staff an opportunity to assess the readiness of the draft PSAR before UIUC formally submits it for the NRC staffs review. The audit will allow the NRC staff to (1) identify any required information that is missing from the application, (2) identify technical or regulatory issues that may complicate the acceptance or technical reviews of the application, and (3) become familiar with the content of the application, particularly in areas where UIUC plans to propose new concepts or novel design features.
The NRC staff will summarize its observations related to items (1) and (2) in an audit report to be provided to UIUC, as discussed below.
Regulatory Audit Basis:
The basis for the audit is the regulations in 10 CFR Part 50, Section 50.34, Contents of applications; technical information, and Section 50.35, Issuance of construction permits.
Regulatory Audit Scope:
The regulatory audit will use parts of the guidance in NRCs Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR) Office Instruction LIC-116, Pre-application Readiness Assessment (ADAMS Accession No. ML20104B698), as guidance for conducting this audit. This audit will cover chapters of the PSAR, and other technical information that may be provided by UIUC on its online reference portal.
Information and Other Material Necessary for the Regulatory Audit:
Information for the regulatory audit will consist of documents associated with the PSAR for the UIUC MMRTM. The first set of documents is expected to include, but may not be limited to, the following:
PSAR Chapter 3, Design of Structures, Systems, and Components PSAR Chapter 10, Experimental Facilities and Utilization PSAR Chapter 12, Conduct of Operations PSAR Chapter 15, Financial Qualifications PSAR Chapter 16, Other License Considerations PSAR Chapter 17, Decommissioning and Possession-Only License Amendments PSAR Chapter 18, Highly Enriched to Low-Enriched Uranium Conversions UIUC expects to develop additional plans for follow-on submissions (e.g., other PSAR chapters) during the audit.
Audit Team:
Ed Helvenston Lead Project Manager (NRC)
Paulette Torres Project Manager (NRC)
Lucieann Vechioli Project Manager (NRC)
Patrick Boyle Lead Technical Reviewer (NRC)
Anthony Konecni Technical Reviewer (NRC)
Zeinab Farahmandfar Technical Reviewer (NRC)
Cindy Montgomery Technical Reviewer (NRC)
Travis Tate Branch Chief, Technical (NRC)
Jeff Rady Branch Chief, Licensing (NRC)
Additional audit team members may be added by the project managers and communicated to UIUC as needed.
Audit Logistics:
Entrance Meeting: TBD Exit Meeting: TBD Audit meetings will take place in a virtual format, using Microsoft Teams, or via other, similar platform. Audit meetings will be scheduled on an as needed basis after the entrance meeting and, as appropriate, once the NRC staff has had the opportunity to review any documents placed in the online reference portal. The audit will begin in December 2025 and continue as necessary, with activities occurring intermittently during the audit period.
To improve the efficiency of the audit, UIUC and NRC staff discussed the use of an online reference portal (i.e., Certrec), established by UIUC, that would allow limited read-only access to the PSAR chapters and other technical information placed in the online reference portal. The use of the online reference portal will be in accordance with the Information Access Agreement Between the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois and the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission, executed November 27, 2023 (ML23332A104). The conditions associated with the online reference portal must be maintained throughout the audit process.
The NRC staff who should initially be granted access to the portal are those listed in the Team Members section above. As needed, the NRC Project Managers may provide UIUC with the names of additional NRC staff members who are added to the audit team and should be granted access.
Special Requests:
The NRC staff requests that UIUC provide subject matter expert(s), if necessary, to discuss the details of the audit material.
Deliverables:
At the completion of the audit, the audit team will issue an audit summary within 90 days after the exit meeting but will strive for a shorter duration. The audit summary will be declared and entered as an official agency record in ADAMS and be made available for public viewing through the Publicly Available Records component of ADAMS.
References:
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations NUREG-1537, Part 1, Guidelines for Preparing and Reviewing Applications for the Licensing of Non-Power Reactors, Format and Content, February 1996 (ML042430055)
NRR Office Instruction LIC-116, Pre-application Readiness Assessment, July 2020 (ML20104B698)
The primary NRC point of contact for this audit is Ed Helvenston (Edward.Helvenston@nrc.gov).