WO 03-0010, Withdrawal of Relief Request 12R-26
| ML030640069 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Wolf Creek  |
| Issue date: | 02/26/2003 |
| From: | Mckinney B Wolf Creek |
| To: | Document Control Desk, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| References | |
| WO 03-0010 | |
| Download: ML030640069 (2) | |
Text
W&LF CREEK
'NUCLEAR OPERATING CORPORATION Britt T. McKinney Site Vice President FEB 2-6k2003 WO 03-0010 U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ATTN: Document Control Desk Washington, DC 20555
Reference:
Subject:
Letter ET 02-0003, dated February 12, 2002, from R. A. Muench, WCNOC, to USNRC Docket 50-482: Withdrawal of Relief Request 12R-26 Gentlemen:
Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation (WCNOC), via the Reference, submitted Relief Request 12R-26. That request proposed an alternative to the requirements of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code to perform a limited examination on austenitic stainless piping welds with single side access. The purpose of this letter is to formally withdraw Relief Request 12R-26.
WCNOC is working with other Strategic Teaming and Resource Sharing (STARS) plants to implement a risk-informed inservice inspection (ISI) methodology to evaluate welds located in break exclusion regions. The methodology to be used is contained in Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) Report 1006947, "Extension of EPRI Risk-Informed Inservice Inspection (RI ISI) Methodology to Break Exclusion Region (BER) Programs, Rev. 0-A." It is anticipated that the use of this methodology will significantly reduce the number of welds that are determined to be risk significant and will likely reduce the number of single side access welds for which relief was sought by the subject relief request.
WCNOC is starting the third period of the second ten-year interval of the Inservice Inspection (ISI) Program. If relief for the welds described in the Reference is required, such relief would not be needed until the end of the second ten-year interval.
WCNOC plans to use the risk-informed ISI methodology to evaluate the risk significance of the welds described in the Reference.
Accordingly, WCNOC believes that withdrawal of Relief Request 12R-26 is appropriate until the completion of the risk-informed evaluation. The intent to withdraw the subject relief request from further consideration by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) was discussed with the Staff on February 11, 2003.
PO. Box 411 / Burlington, KS 66839 / Phone (620) 364-8831 An Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/HCNET
WO 03-0010 Page 2 of 2 If you have any questions concerning this matter, please contact me at (620) 364-4112, or Mr.
Tony Harris at (620) 364-4038.
Very truly yours, Britt T. McKinney BTM/pb Attachment cc: J. N. Donohew (NRC)
D. N. Graves (NRC)
E. W. Merschoff (NRC)
Senior Resident Inspector (NRC)