ML082900432

Response to Request for Withholding Information from Public Disclosure

ML082900432
Person / Time
Site:	Susquehanna
Issue date:	10/21/2008
From:	Bhalchandra Vaidya Plant Licensing Branch 1
To:	Mckinney B Susquehanna
vaidya B, NRR/Dorl/lpl1-1, 415-3308
References
TAC MD8079
Download: ML082900432 (4)

Text

October 21, 2008 Mr. Britt T. McKinney Sr. Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer PPL Susquehanna, LLC 769 Salem Blvd., NUCSB3 Berwick, PA 18603-0467

SUBJECT:

PPL SUSQUEHANNA - REQUEST FOR WITHHOLDING INFORMATION FROM PUBLIC DISCLOSURE SUSQUEHANNA STEAM ELECTRIC STATION, UNITS 1 AND 2 (TAC NO. MD8079)

Dear Mr. McKinney:

By letter dated September 26, 2008, PPL Susquehanna, LLC, submitted the following three affidavits:

1. Executed by Mr. Tim E. Abney, Vice President, Services Licensing, Regulatory Affairs, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Americas LLC (GEH), dated July 18, 2008,

2. Executed by Mr. Tim E. Abney, Vice President, Services Licensing, Regulatory Affairs, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Americas LLC (GEH), dated September 16, 2008, and

3. Executed by Richard D. Pagodin, General Manager, Nuclear Engineering, PPL Susquehanna, LLC, dated August 6, 2008.

All affidavits requested that the information contained in the following document be withheld from public disclosure pursuant to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR)

Section 2.390:

Enclosure 1 to the letter from PPL Susquehanna (Mr. B. T. McKinney, Senior Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer), PLA-6408, dated September 26, 2008, GEH "SSES Replacement Dryer Vibration Instrumentation Program NRC Summary Test Report" and PPL "Susquehanna Unit 1 EPU [Extended Power Uprate] Start-Up Main Steam Line Strain Gage and Piping Vibration Summary Test Report."

The affidavits from Mr. Abney of GEH stated that the submitted information should be considered exempt from mandatory public disclosure for the following reasons:

(4)a. Information that discloses a process, method, or apparatus, including supporting data and analyses, where prevention of its use by GEH's competitors without license from GEH constitutes a competitive economic advantage over other companies; (4)b. Information which, if used by a competitor, would reduce his expenditure of resources or improve his competitive position in the design, manufacture, shipment, installation, assurance of quality, or licensing of a similar product;

B. McKinney The affidavit from Mr. Pagodin from PPL stated that the submitted information should be considered exempt from mandatory public disclosure for the following reasons:

7. The information identified [. . . ] is classified as proprietary because it details the results of test data derived from test instrumentation installed specifically to collect this data. This instrumentation was installed at a significant cost to PPL.

The data and the conditions under which it was collected constitute a major PPL asset.

8. Public disclosure of the information sought to be withheld is likely to cause substantial harm to PPL by foreclosing or reducing the availability of profit-making opportunities. The information is of value to other BWR Licensees and would support [their] evaluations and analyses associated with extended power uprate license amendment submittals. Making this information available to other BWR Licensees would represent a windfall and deprive PPL the opportunity to recover a portion of its large investment in test instrumentation from which this data is derived.

We have reviewed your application and the material in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR 2.390 and, on the basis of your statements, have determined that the submitted information sought to be withheld contains proprietary commercial information and should be withheld from public disclosure.

Therefore, the versions of the submitted information marked as proprietary will be withheld from public disclosure pursuant to 10 CFR 2.390(b)(5) and Section 103(b) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended.

A nonproprietary copy of this document has been placed in the NRCs Public Document Room and added to the Agencywide Documents Access and Management System Public Electronic Reading Room.

Withholding from public inspection shall not affect the right, if any, of persons properly and directly concerned to inspect the documents. If the need arises, we may send copies of this information to our consultants working in this area. We will, of course, ensure that the consultants have signed the appropriate agreements for handling proprietary information.

If the basis for withholding this information from public inspection should change in the future such that the information could then be made available for public inspection, you should promptly notify the NRC. You also should understand that the NRC may have cause to review this determination in the future, for example, if the scope of a Freedom of Information Act

B. McKinney request includes your information. In all review situations, if the NRC makes a determination adverse to the above, you will be notified in advance of any public disclosure.

If you have any questions regarding this matter, I may be reached at 301-415-3308.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Bhalchandra Vaidya, Project Manager Plant Licensing Branch I-1 Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket Nos. 50-387 and 50-388 cc: Distribution via ListServe and Mr. Tim E. Abney Mr. Richard D. Pagodin Vice President, Methods Licensing, General Manager, Nuclear Engineering, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Americas LLC PPL Susquehanna, LLC, 3901 Castle Hayne Road 769 Salem Blvd., NUCSB3 Wilmington, NC 28401 Berwick, PA 18603-0467

ML082900432 OFFICE NRR/LPL1-1/PM NRR/LPL1-1/LA NRR/DE/EMCB/BC NRR/LPL1-1/BC NAME BVaidya SLittle KManoly MKowal DATE 10/20/08 10/20/08 10/20/08 10/21/08