ML20244D431

Denies Request to Withhold 880512 PRA Submittal from Public Disclosure (Ref 10CFR2.790).Detailed Justification of Finding Encl

ML20244D431
Person / Time
Site:	Brunswick
Issue date:	04/14/1989
From:	Le N Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:	Eury L CAROLINA POWER & LIGHT CO.
References
TAC-68295, TAC-68296, NUDOCS 8904210337
Download: ML20244D431 (4)

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.,L April 14, 1989

' Docket'Nos. 50-325 DISTRIBUTION and 50-324 dNctetlue GKelly NRC PDR' Mr. Lynn W. Eury- Local PDR Executive Vice President PD21'r/f Power Supply .

SVarga Carolina Power & Light. Company Glainas Post Office Box 1551 EAdensam Raleigh, North. Carolina 27602 .PAnderson NLe

Dear Mr. Eury:

ETourigny BKildee OGC

SUBJECT:

REQUEST FOR WITHHOLDING INFOR6 TION FROM PUBLIC DISCLOSURE (TAC N0s. 68295 AND 68296)

By your application dated May 12, 1988, you submitted the Brunswick Steam Electric Plant's Probabilistic Risk Assessment. (PRA) for the staff's review 'and requested that the' PPA and its results be withheld from public disclosure -

pursuant to 10 CFR 2.790.

Section 2.790(b)(1)(ii) of 10 CFR Part 2 of the Commission's regulations requires that.each supporting affidavit contain a full statement of the reasons on the basis o_f which it is claimed that the information should be withheld from public disclosure. The section further requires. the statement to " address with specificity" the considerations listed in 10 CFR L 790(b)(4).

Your application has been reviewed in light of the aforenentione'd paragraphs of the regulations; and we have found that neither the material contained in the PRA, nor your withholding request, meets the criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.790. Detailed justification of our finding is provided in the enclosure to this letter.

Accordingly, consideration shouki be'given to supplementing the present record with additional factual:information. , If such action is taken, it is suggested that you furnish additional. specific factual .information for your application to' address the staff's'contarns.as indicated in the enclosure.

In summary, we have determined that your affidavit is not in conformity with 10 CFR 2.790(b) of the Commission's regulations because it fails to address the considerations of paragraph 2.773(b)(4) with sufficient specificity to enable us to.make the required determination under 10 CFR 2.790(b).

Consequently, we are unable to conclude, at this time, that the information referenced in the affidavit is proprietary.

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.790(c), the information sought to be withheld will be placed it the Commission's Public Document Room 30 days after your receipt i of this letter unless you either seek to withdraw the information requested to j l

I l 8904210337 DR 890414 l p ADOCK 05000324 PDC

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April 14, 1989

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Mr. L. Eury be withheld or provide the Nuclear Regulatory Commission with an amended request meeting the requirements of 10 CFR 2.790(b). If you request that

'the information be withdrawn, your request will be considered in light of applicable statutes and regulations and a determint. tion made whether the documents will be withheld from public disclosure and returned to you.

Sincerely, Ngoc B. Le, Project Manager Proj s t Directorate 11 Division of Reactor Projects I/II Office of Nuclear Reactcr Regulation

Enclosure:

Justification of Denial of Claims that Brunswick PRA is Proprietary cc w/ encl:

See next page l-l l (LTR. % EURY FROM LE)

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. Mr. Lynn W. Eury ..

Brunswick Steam Electric Plant Carolina Power & Light Company Units 1 and 2-cc: )

i Mr. Russell B. Starkey, Jr. Mr. J. L. Harness ]

Project Manager Plant General Manager Brunswick Nuclear Project Brunswick Steam Electric Plant j Box 10429 P. O. Box 10429 .

Southport, North Carolina 28461 Southpoet, North Carolina 28461 Mr. R. E. Jones, General Counsel Mr. H. A. Cole Carolina Power & Light Company Special Deputy Attorney General P. O. Box 1551 State of North Carolina Raleigh, North Carolina 27602 Post Office Box 629 Raleigh, North Carolina 27602 Mr. Mark S. Calvert Associate General Counsel Mr. Robert P. Gruber Carolina Power & Light Company Executive Director Post Office Box 1551 Public Staff - NCUC Raleigh, North Carolina 27602 Post Office Box 29520 Raleigh, North Carolina 27626-0520 Ms. Grace Beasley Board of Commissioners Post Office Box 249 Bolivia, North Carolina 28422 Mrs. Chrys Baggett State Clearinghouse Budget and Management 116 West Jones Street Raleigh, North Carolina 27603 Resident Inspector U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Star Route 1 Post Office Box 208 Southport, North Carolina 28461 Regional Administrator, Region II U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 101 Marietta Street, Suite 2900 Atlanta, Georgia 30323 Mr. Dayne H. Brown, Chief Radiation Protection Branch Division of Facility Services N. C. Department of Human Resources 701 Barbour Drive Raleigh, North Carolina 27603-2008 L

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ENCLOSURE JUSTIFICATION OF STAFF FINDING ON THE CAROLINA POWER & LIGHT COMPANY CLAIM THAT THE BRUNSWICK STEAM ELECTRIC PLANT PROBABILISTIC RISK ASSESSMENT IS PROPRIETARY Part (b)(1)(ii) of 10 CFR 2.790 requires that the person who proposes that NRC withhold a document make a full statement of the basis,for the claim. The basis shall address whether the information is of a type customarily held in

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confidence by its owner, whether there is a rational basis therefore and whether public disclosure of the information.is likely to cause substantial harm to the competitive position of the owner of the information. . Finally.

if the owner demonstrates that the infonnation contains confidential commercial' information, it must be determined by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission whether the right of the public to be fully' apprised of the basis for and effects of licensing or regulatory actions, based on the Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA), outweighs the demonstrated concern for protection of a competitive position. Based on those criteria, the staff's determinations on Carolina Power & Light Company (CP&L) claims regarding Brunswick's PRA are as followed:

CP&L stated, without providing justification, that it would be to their competitive economic disadvantage to allow the

.public free access to the information contained in the Brunswick PRA. Absent that justification, the staff found no economic disadvantage to CP&L if the Brunswick PRA is made available to the public.

CP&L stated that the PRA should be withheld since it possibly l .. could be used to improve the reliability and operation of'other nuclear power plants. The NRC staff and its contractors have concluded many times that the most.significant improvements in i reliability and plant safety usually come from a plant-specific l risk assessment such as that contemplated under the upcoming l- Individual Plant Examination Program. .The staff does not see how the improvement of the reliability and operation of other nuclear power plants'would substantially harm the competitive position of CP&L. In' addition, there are many existing PRAs currently available to the public on a non-proprietary basis.

• The CP&L withholding request did not address how the right of the public to be fully apprised of the potential risk of operation of the Brunswick units weighed against the desire to retain an alleged competitive advantage.

CP&L is not in the business of marketing PRA capabilities.

The PRA, as performed by EI International, does not appear to  ;

have significantly advanced the state of the art of PRAs. {

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