ML090220442

Issuance of Amendment Change to In-Service Inspection Interval.

ML090220442
Person / Time
Site:	Palisades
Issue date:	02/11/2009
From:	Mahesh Chawla Plant Licensing Branch III
To:	Entergy Nuclear Operations
Chawla M, NRR/DORL, 415-8371
References
TAC MD9266, WCAP-16168-NP-A, Rev. 2
Download: ML090220442 (10)

Text

\-<.1'\\ REGU,_ UNITED STATES "V "'{r NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

",<1' _~ _> 0""...

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555*0001

/!:

of "0

~ \-I i

~ ~

Y/.~~ ,,0*' February 11, 2009 Vice President, Operations Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.

Palisades Nuclear Plant 27780 Blue Star Memorial Highway Covert, MI 49043-9530

SUBJECT:

PALISADES PLANT - ISSUANCE OF AMENDMENT RE: CHANGE TO IN SERVICE INSPECTION INTERVAL (TAC NO. MD9266)

Dear Sir or Madam:

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued the enclosed Amendment No. 237 to Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-20 for the Palisades Plant. The amendment consists of changes to the Technical Specifications (TSs) in response to your application dated July 21, 2008 .

The amendment supports a proposed change to the in-service inspection program that is based on topical report WCAP-16168-NP-A, Revision 2, "Risk-Informed Extension of the Reactor Vessel In-Service Inspection Interval. " In the referenced safety evaluation of the topical report ,

the NRC required licensees to amend their licenses to require that the information and analyses requested in Section (e) of the final 10 CFR 50.61 a (or the proposed 10 CFR 50.61 a, given in 72 FR 56275 prior to issuance of the final 10 CFR 50.61 a) be submitted for NRC staff review and approval within one year of completing the required reactor vessel weld inspection. Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., added a new license condition to provide this information.

A copy of our related safety evaluation is also enclosed. The Notice of Issuance will be included in the Comm ission's biweekly Federal Register notice .

Sincerely, Mahesh L. Chawla , Project Manager Plant Licensing Branch 111-1 Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-255

Enclosures:

1. Amendment No. 237 to DPR-20

2. Safety Evaluation cc w/encls : Distribution via ListServ

UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001 ENTERGY NUCLEAR OPERATIONS, INC.

DOCKET NO. 50-255 PALISADES PLANT AMENDMENT TO RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Amendment No. 237 License No. DPR-20

1. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has found that:

A. The application for amendment by Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (the licensee),

dated July 21, 2008, complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's rules and regulations set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I; B. The facility will operate in conformity with the application , the provisions of the Act, and the rules and regulations of the Commission; C. There is reasonable assurance (i) that the activities authorized by this amendment can be conducted without endangering the health and safety of the public; and (ii) that such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations; D. The issuance of this amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public; E. The issuance of this amendment is in accordance with 10 CFR Part 51 of the Commission's regulations and all applicable requirements have been satisfied.

-2

2. Accordingly, the license is amended by adding new license condition 2.C.(8) to the operating license of Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-20 as indicated in the attachment to this license amendment, as follows:

(8) Upon implementation of Amendment 237 ,within one year: of completing each of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (ASME Code),Section XI, Category B-A and B-D reactor vessel weld inspections, submit information and analyses requested in Section (e) of the final 10 CFR 50.61a (or the proposed 10 CFR 50.61a, given in 72 FR 56275 prior to issuance of the final 10 CFR 50.61a) to the NRC.

3. This license amendment is effective as of the date of issuance and shall be implemented within 60 days.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Lois M. James, Chief Plant Licensing Branch 111-1 Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Attachment:

Changes to the Facility Operating License Date of Issuance: February 11, 2009

ATTACHIV1EI\JT TO LICENSE AMENDMENT NO. 237 RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. DPR-20 DOCKET NO. 50-255 Replace the following page of the Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-20 with the attached revised page. The changed area is identified by a marginal line.

REMOVE INSERT Page 3 Page 3 Add the following page of the Appendix C Additional Conditions. The page contains marginal line indicating the change.

REMOVE INSERT NA Operating License, Page 5b

-3 (1) Pursuant to Section 104b of the Act, as amended, and 10 CFR Part 50, "Licensing of Production and Utilization Facilities," (a) ENP to possess and use, and (b) ENO to possess, use and operate, the facility as a utilization facility at the designated location in Van Buren County, Michigan, in accordance with the procedures and limitation set forth in this license; (2) ENO, pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 40 and 70, to receive, possess, and use source and special nuclear material as reactor fuel, in accordance with the limitations for storage and amounts required for reactor operation, as described in the Updated Final Safety Analysis Report, as supplemented and amended; (3) ENO, pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30, 40, and 70, to receive, possess, and use byproduct, source, and special nuclear material as sealed sources for reactor startup, reactor instrumentation, radiation monitoring equipment calibration, and fission detectors in amounts as required ;

(4) ENO, pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30,40, and 70, to receive , possess, and use in amounts as required any byproduct, source, or special nuclear material for sample analysis or instrument calibration, or associated with radioactive apparatus or components; and (5) ENO, pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30, 40, and 70, to possess , but not separate, such byproduct and special nuclear materials as may be produced by the operations of the facility.

C. This renewed operating license shall be deemed to contain and is subject to the conditions specified in the Commission's regulations in 10 CFR Chapter I and is subject to all applicable provisions of the Act; to the rules, regulations, and orders of the Commission now or hereafter in effect; and is subject to the additional conditions specified or incorporated below:

(1) ENO is authorized to operate the facility at steady-state reactor core power levels not in excess of 2565.4 Megawatts thermal (100 percent rated power) in accordance with the conditions specified herein.

(2) The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A, as revised through Amendment No.237, and the Environmental Protection Plan contained in Appendix B are hereby incorporated in the license. ENO shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications and the Environmental Protection Plan.

(3) ENO shall implement and maintain in effect all provisions of the approved fire protection program as described in the Final Safety Analysis Report for the facility and as approved in the SERs dated 09/01/78, 03/19/80 , 02/10/81, OS/26/83, 07/12/85, 01/29/86, 12/03/87, and 05/19/89 and subject to the following provisions:

Renewed License No. DPR-20 Amendment No. 237

5b (8) Upon implementation of Amendment 237, within one year of completing each of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (ASME Code),Section XI, Category B-A and B-D reactor vessel weld inspections, submit information and analyses requested in Section (e) of the final 10 CFR 50.61 a (or the proposed 10 CFR 50.61 a, given in 72 FR 56275 prior to issuance of the final 10 CFR 50.61a) to the NRC.

Renewed License No. DPR-20 Amendment No. 237

UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555*0001 SAFETY EVALUATION BY THE OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION RELATED TO AMENDMENT NO. 237 TO RENEWED FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. DPR-20 ENTERGY NUCLEAR OPERATIONS, INC.

PALISADES PLANT DOCKET NO. 50-255

1.0 INTRODUCTION

By letter dated July 21,2008 (Reference 3), the Entergy Nuclear Operations. Inc. (the licensee),

submitted a request for changes to the Palisades Nuclear Plant (PNP , Palisades) operating license. The requested changes would introduce a new license conditions that will require the licensee to submit information and analyses requested in Section (e) of the final 10 CFR 50.61 a (or the proposed 10 CFR 50 .61a, given in 72 FR 56275 prior to issuance of the final 10 CFR 50.61a) to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), within one year of completing each of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (ASME Code),

Section XI, Category B-A and B-D reactor vessel weld inspections.

2.0 REGULATORY EVALUATION

This amendment request is a required part of a code relief request submitted to extend the Palisades reactor vessel (RV) Inservice Inspection (lSI) 10-year inspection interval. Reference 4 provides the requirements a station must meet in order for the NRC to approve such an alternative to Section XI of the ASME Code. This amendment request meets the requirement, listed in Section 3.4 of Reference 5, that the licensee will submit identified information and analyses to the NRC.

The proposed change, to report results from RV examinations required by Section XI of the ASME code, is being submitted in support of demonstrating Palisades's ability to justify extending its RV lSI interval frequency.

3.0 TECHNICAL EVALUATION

This letter requests an amendment to Renewed Operating License DPR-20 for Palisades. The proposed change will insert into the operating license a requirement involving the reporting of specified RV lSI information and analyses as specified in Reference 1. This amendment request is a required element of a code relief request (Reference 2) to extend the RV lSI 10-year inspection interval. The code relief request is based on the analysis contained within Reference 4. The methodology in Reference 4 was evaluated by the NRC, in Reference 5, as Enclosure

-2 being acceptable for referencing in license amendment requests. Reference 5 requires that licensees desiring to extend the frequency of the RV lSI interval, which do not implement 10 CFR 50.61 a, must amend their licenses to require the submittal of information and analyses requested in paragraph (e) of the final 10 CFR 50.61a [or the proposed 10 CFR 50.61a , as listed in Reference 1 prior to the issuance of the final 10 CFR 50.61a]. Currently, the licensee has not implemented 10 CFR 50.61 a because the final rule has not yet been approved . Therefore, in accordance with Reference 3, the licensee is requesting to amend the license as described below.

The licensee proposed to add new paragraph (8) to Section 2.C of the operating license to read as follows:

(8) Upon implementation of Amendment 237, within one year of completing each of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (ASME Code),Section XI, Category B-A and B-D reactor vessel weld inspections, submit information and analyses requested in Section (e) of the final 10 CFR 50.61a (or the proposed 10 CFR 50.61a, given in 72 FR 56275 prior to issuance of the final 10 CFR 50.61a) to the NRC.

This proposed change implements the requirement to submit a license amendment request at the time of submitting a relief request as specified in Reference 5. The relief request to extend the RV lSI interval is separate from this license change and is being reviewed separately.

The proposed change is administrative in nature because it adds a reporting requirement to the operating license. The justification for the information requested, and the scope and frequency of the lSI examinations is given in Reference 2. This proposed amendment only addresses the reporting of results following the described lSI examination. Submittal of the data required by 10 CFR 50.61 a is necessary to demonstrate the RV maintains its ability to meet code fracture toughness requirements and is used to justify continued use of the approved code relief request for an extended RV lSI interval. Since the proposed change involves only a requirement for the submittal of information, it clearly does not have any impact on the operation of the plant or any design basis accident, is not related to a margin of safety, and is acceptable to the NRC staff.

4.0 STATE CONSULTATION

In accordance with the Commission's regulations, the Michigan State official was notified of the proposed issuance of the amendment. The Michigan State official had no comments.

5.0 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATION

The amendment relates to changes in record keeping , reporting, or administrative procedures or requirements. The Commission has previously issued a proposed finding that the amendment involves no significant hazards consideration, and there has been no public comment on such finding (73 FR 65690). Accordingly, the amendment meets the eligibility criteria for categorical exclusion set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(10). Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared in connection with the issuance of the amendment.

-3

6.0 CONCLUSION

The Commission has concluded, based on the considerations discussed above, that: (1) there is reasonable assurance that the health and safety of the public will not be endangered by operation in the proposed manner, (2) such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations, and (3) the issuance of the amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public.

7.0 REFERENCES

1. Federal Register Notice (72 FR 56275), dated October 3, 2007, Alternative Fracture Toughness Requirements for Protection Against Pressurized Thermal Shock Events.

2. Letter from ENO to NRC, dated July 21, 2008 - Request for Authorization to Extend the Third 1O-Year Inservice Inspection Interval for Reactor Vessel Weld Examination (ADAMS Accession No. ML082040342).

3. Letter from ENO to NRC, dated July 21,2008 - License Amendment Request for License Condition to Support Implementation of Extended In-Service Inspection Interval (ADAMS Accession No. ML082030796).

4. WCAP-16168-NP, Revision 2, dated June 2008, Risk-Informed Extension of the Reactor Vessel In-Service Inspection Interval.

5. Letter from H. K. l'Jieh (NRC) to G. Bischoff (PWROG), dated May 8,2008, Final Safety Evaluation for Pressurized Water Reactor Owners Group (PWROG) Topical Report (TR)

WCAP-16168-NP, Revision 2, "Risk-Informed Extension of the Reactor Vessel In Service Inspection Interval" (TAC No. MC9768) (ADAMS Accession No. ML081060045)

Principal Contributor: Mahesh Chawla, NRR Date: February 11, 2009

ML090220442 OFFICE LPL3-1/PM LPL3-1/LA CVIB/BC OGC LPL3-1/BC NAME MChawla BTully MMitcheli BMizuno LJames DATE 01/29/09 01/29/09 02/15/09 02/04/09 02/11/09