ML20199C631
| ML20199C631 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Millstone  |
| Issue date: | 01/07/1999 |
| From: | Durr J NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION I) |
| To: | Bowling M, Loftus P NORTHEAST NUCLEAR ENERGY CO. |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20199C636 | List: |
| References | |
| 50-336-98-05, 50-336-98-5, 50-423-98-05, 50-423-98-5, NUDOCS 9901190032 | |
| Download: ML20199C631 (4) | |
See also: IR 05000336/1998005
Text
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January 7,1999
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Mr. M. L. Bowling, Recovery Officer, Technical Services l
C
/o Patricia Loftus, Director - Regulatory
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Affairs for Millstone Station
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Northeast Nuclear Energy Company
P.O. Box 128 '
Waterford, Connecticut 06385
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SUBJECT: NRC COMBINED INSPECTION 50-336/98-05;50-423/98-05and NOTICE OF 1
VIOLATION
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Dear Mr. Bowling: i
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On November 23,1998, the NRC completed an inspection period at Millstone Units 2 & 3
reactor facilities. The enclosed report presents the results of that inspection. 1
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- During the 7-week period covered by this inspection, your conduct of activities at the i
Millstone facilities was generally characterized by safety-conscious and conservative l
management decisions relating to plant safety, sound engineering and maintenance !
l practices, and careful radiological work controls. Nevertheless, a series of operational !
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challenges continues to impact Unit 3 performance, which are discussed below. Also, we
l are concerned about a violation of NRC requirements that was identified at Unit 2.
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' The NRC identified a violation at Unit 2 which involved the failure to demonstrate, either
by documentation or field walkdowns, that repairs to 18 fire barrier penetration seals and
the installation of one seal satisfied the testing and configuration requirements of the
Millstone 2 fire protection program. This is a concern, because at the time of the
i inspection, you were unable to demonstrate the adequacy of the fire barrier installations.
Please note that you are required to respond to this letter and should follow the
instructions specified in the enclosed Notice when preparing your response. The NRC will
use your response, in part, to determine whether further enforcement action is necessary
to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.
Also at Unit 2, we noted that your self-assessment of the Material, Equipment, and Parts
Lbt (MEPL) Program was of high quality and very self-critical, particularly regarding the
disposition of MEPL-related non-conformance reports (NCRs). Your previous self- I
assessment, as well as several NRC inspection reports over the past two years, have
. discussed the inadequate justification in NCRs for the "use as is" disposition for MEPL 1
- upgrades. We are concerned that at this point in the recovery process, your efforts have >
not been effective in addressing this concern. Increased management attention to address
! this restart issue is warranted. '
t-
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100033
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9901190032 990107
! PDR ADOCK 05000336
G PDR
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Mr. M. L. Bowling 2
During this inspection period, the Unit 3 operators initiated two manual trips of the reactor
in accordance with plant procedures. One trip resulted from an equipment problem; and
the other trip was weather related, but with some causal relationship to other equipment
performance issues. Our review of your response to these events confirmed proper
operator response to the plant and equipment challenges. Similarly, our review of your
corrective actions to the enforcement items issued as a result of our operational safety
team inspection (OSTI) of Unit 3 found acceptable responses on the part of your staff,
particularly in the operations area. While we recognize this overall operational performance
represents an improvement, we believe that continued management attention must be
directed to not only sustained operational performance at the observed higher threshold,
but also a reduction in the backlogged list of equipment problems and other issues that
have the potential to create future operational challenges to your Unit 3 operations staff.
In this vein, your Unit 3 theme for a renewed " operational focus" is well served, but must
be directed toward all areas and departments affecting plant operations, in order to be fully
effective,
in accordance with 10 CFR 2.790 of the NRC's " Rules of Practice," a copy of this letter,
its enclosures, and your response will be placed in the NRC Public Document Room.
Sincerely,
ORIGINAL SIGNED BY:
Jacque P. Durr, Chief
Millstone Inspection Branch
Docket Nos. 50-336
50-423
Enclosures:
2. NRC Combined Inspection Report 50-336/98-05:50-423/98-05
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Mr. M. L. Bowling 3
cc w/ench
B. Kenyon, President and Chief Executive Officer - Nuclear Group
L. Olivier, Senior Vice President & Chief Nuclear Officer
M. H. Brothers, Vice President - Operations
R. Necci, Vice President - Nuclear Oversight and Regulatory Affairs
C. J. Schwarz, Director - Unit 3
J. A. Price, Director - Unit 2
D. Amerine, Vice President - Human Services
E. Harkness, Director, Unit 1 Operations
J. Althouse, Manager - Nuclear Training Assessment Group
F. C. Rothen, Vice President, Work Services
J. Cantrell, Director - Nuclear Training (CT)
S. J. Sherman, Audits and Evaluation
L. M. Cuoco, Esquire
J. R. Egan, Esquire
V. Juliano, Waterford Library
J. Buckingham, Department of Public Utility Control
S. B. Comley, We The People
State of Connecticut SLO Designee
D. Katz, Citizens Awareness Network (CAN)
R. Bassilakis, CAN
J. M. Block, Attorney, CAN
S. P. Luxton, Citizens Regulatory Commission (CRC)
Representative T. Concannon
E. Woollacott, Co-Chairman, NEAC
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Mr. M. L. Bowling 4
Distribution w/ encl:
Region I Docket Room (with sony of concurrences)
Nuclear Safety Information Center (NSIC)
PUBLIC
FILE CENTER, NRR (with Oriainsi concurrences)
Millstone inspection Directorate Secretarial File, Region i
NRC Resident inspector
H. Miller, Regional Administrator, R1
W. Axelson, Deputy Regional Administrator, R1(Inspection Reports)
8. Jones, PIMB/ DISP
W. Lanning, Director, Millstone inspection Directorate, R1
D. Screnci, PAO
Distribution w/enci (VIA E-MAIL):
M. Callahan, OCA
R. Correia, NRR
B. McCabe, OEDO
E. Imbro, Director, Millstone ICAVP inspections, NRR
W. Dean, Director, Millstone Project Directorate, NRR
H. Pastis, NRR (Employee Concerns Only)
P. Kottay, Chief, ICAVP Oversight, NRR
inspection Program Branch
DOCDESK (Inspection Reports Only)
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DOCUMENT NAME: G:\TEMPFILE\lR9805.u23
To receive a copy of tids document, indicate in the box: "C" = Copy without
attachment / enclosure "E" = Copy with attachment / enclosure "N" = No copy
OFFICE Rl/MID _ lE / l / l
NAME DURR ita '
DATE 1/7/99 01/ /99 01/ /99 01/ /99
OFFICIAL RECORD COPY
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