Press Release-02-057, NRC Issues Draft Safety Evaluation Report on Proposed MOX Facility in South Carolina

Press Release-02-057: NRC Issues Draft Safety Evaluation Report on Proposed MOX Facility in South Carolina

ML021490186
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Site:	07003098
Issue date:	05/02/2002
From:	Office of Public Affairs
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NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200 Washington, DC 20555-0001 E-mail: opa@nrc.gov Web Site: www.nrc.govNo. 02-057May 2, 2002 NRC ISSUES DRAFT SAFETY EVALUATION REPORTON PROPOSED MOX FACILITY IN SOUTH CAROLINAThe Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has issued a draft safety evaluation report concerningthe construction of a proposed mixed oxide (MOX) fuel fabrication facility at the Department of Energy's (DOE's) Savannah River site near Aiken, South Carolina.

The draft report is a snapshot of the staff's present positions, based on information received todate. The staff expects to issue a revised draft and a final safety evaluation report on construction of the facility, after evaluating further information to be submitted by DOE's contractor, Duke Cogema Stone

& Webster (DCS).In the draft safety evaluation report just issued, the NRC staff concluded that DCS needs toprovide additional information on a number of issues before a construction authorization can be granted. A complete list of the items that the staff considers unresolved is provided in the draft report.A copy of the "Draft Safety Evaluation Report on the Construction Authorization Request forthe Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility" will be available at:

http://www.nrc.gov/materials/fuel-cycle-fac/mox/licensing.html on the NRC's web site. The reportwill also be available through the NRC Public Document Room at 301/415-4737 or 1/800-397-4209. If NRC authorizes construction, DCS could begin building a MOX facility designed to convertsurplus weapons-grade plutonium, supplied by the Department of Energy, into MOX fuel for use in commercial nuclear power reactors authorized to use such fuel. Converting weapons-grade plutonium into MOX fuel helps advance the cause of nonproliferation by converting the material into a form

unsuitable for use in weapons. DCS is required to submit a separate application for a license to operate the proposed MOX facility.