Press Release-11-008, NRC Issues Final Safety Evaluation Report for Palo Verde Nuclear Power Plant License Renewal

Press Release-11-008: NRC Issues Final Safety Evaluation Report for Palo Verde Nuclear Power Plant License Renewal

ML110130487
Person / Time
Site:	Palo Verde
Issue date:	01/13/2011
From:	Office of Public Affairs
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Press Release-11-008
Download: ML110130487 (2)

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NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200 Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 E-mail: opa.resource@nrc.gov Site: http://www.nrc.gov No.11-008 January 13, 2011 NRC ISSUES FINAL SAFETY EVALUATION REPORT FOR PALO VERDE NUCLEAR POWER PLANT LICENSE RENEWAL The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued its final safety evaluation report (SER) for the proposed renewal of the operating licenses for the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Stations Units 1, 2 and 3 in Maricopa County, Ariz., and concluded that there are no open safety items that would preclude license renewal for an additional 20 years of operation.

The report documents the results of the NRC staffs review of the license renewal application and site audits of the plants aging management programs to address the safety of plant operations during the period of extended operation. Overall, the results show that the applicant has identified actions that have been or will be taken to manage the effects of aging in appropriate systems, structures and components of the plant, and that their functions will be maintained during the period of extended operation.

Issuing the final SER is a significant milestone in the license renewal review process.

This process proceeds along two tracks - one for review of safety issues and another for environmental issues. The SER marks the completion of the NRC staffs safety review.

The staff has also completed the environmental review of Palo Verdes license renewal application; the supplemental Environmental Impact Statement is available on the NRC website here: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1437/supplement43/.

The SER and the license renewal application have been provided to the Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS), an independent body of experts that advises the Commission on reactor safety matters. The ACRS will discuss the SER during its February meeting, details of which will be posted on the NRC website at: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/acrs/agenda/2011/. The ACRS will later issue a letter to the Commission discussing the results of its review.

Arizona Public Service Company (APS) submitted an application to the NRC dated December 2008 to extend the Palo Verde Generating Station licenses by 20 years for each unit.

The current operating licenses for Palo Verdes Units 1, 2 and 3 expire on June 1, 2025; April 24, 2026; and Nov. 25, 2027, respectively.

In a letter dated Jan. 11, Brian Holian, director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulations Division of License Renewal, provided APS with the SER. The SER will be available on the NRCs website at:

http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/palo-verde.html.

Documents related to the final SER will be available for public inspection at the following locations: Litchfield Park Branch Library, 101 West Wigwam Blvd., Litchfield Park, Ariz.; and Sam Garcia Western Avenue Library, 495 East Western Ave., Avondale, Ariz.

A copy of the Palo Verde license renewal application is available on the NRCs website at: http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/palo-verde.html.

Additional information on the NRCs license renewal review process is available at:

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/license-renewal-bg.html and http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal.html.

News releases are available through a free listserv subscription at the following Web address:

http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/listserver.html. The NRC homepage at www.nrc.gov also offers a SUBSCRIBE link. E-mail notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are posted to NRC's website.