ML20137U353

Order Approving Application Re Formation of Operating Company & Transfer of Operating Authority

ML20137U353
Person / Time
Site:	South Texas
Issue date:	04/08/1997
From:	Collins S NRC (Affiliation Not Assigned)
To:	HOUSTON LIGHTING & POWER CO.
Shared Package
ML20137U333	List: ML20137U329 ML20137U353 ML20137U381
References
NUDOCS 9704160369
Download: ML20137U353 (4)

Text

. _ _ . _ . -. . - . - - . . - . .- - . . . . _ - . - . . . -

5.

• 2 7590-01 i UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 4

! NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION i

4 In the Matter of )

, )

3 HOUSTON LIGHTING AND POWER COMPANY ) Docket Nos. 50-498 j CITY PUBLIC SERVICE BOARD OF ) and 50-499 SAN ANTONIO )

CENTRAL POWER AND LIGHT COMPANY )

i' CITY OF AUSTIN, TEXAS )

) i (South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2) )  !

) 1

) l ORDER APPROVING APPLICATION REGARDING THE FORMATION i 0F AN OPERATING COMPANY AND TRANSFER OF OPERATING AUTHORITY  :

i  ;

! I.'

j i j Houston Lighting and Power Company (HL&P), City Public Service Board of San Antonio, Central Power and Light Company, and City of Austin, Texas, are t

j the owners of the South Texas Proiect, Units 1 and 2 (STP). The owners hold

! Facility Operating Licenses Nos. NPF-76 and NPF-80 issued by the U.S. Nuclear i'

Regulatory Commission (NRC) pursuant to Part 50 of Title 10 of the Code of

Federal Reaulations (10 CFR Part 50) on March 22, 1988, and March 28, 1989, 1

) respectively. Under these licenses, HL&P is authorized to act for the owners

and has exclusive responsibility for and control over the physical i

j construction, operation, and maintenance of STP. STP is located in Matagorda i

County, Texas.

$ II.

By letter dated August 23, 1996, as supplemented by letters dated October 1 and 15, 1996, and January 28, 1997, HL&P requested approval of the transfer of operating authority under the licenses to a new operating company and issuance of conforming amendments. HL&P proposes to transfer operating 9704160369 970408 PDR ADOCK 05000498 P PDR

i 1

?

j- i i i

} authority under the licenses to a new operating company to allow it to use and  !

operate STP and to possess and'use related licensed nuclear materials in 1

{ accordance with the same conditions and authorizations included in the current j operating licentes. HL&P has also requested the issuance of license i i amendments reflecting the transfer of operating authority. The new operating ,

j company would be formed by the owners to become the licensed operator for STP j and would have exclusive control over the operation and maintenance of the  ;

l facility. The present plant organization, the oversight organizations, and  !

i the engineering and support organizations would be transferred essentially f intact from HL&P to the new operating company. The technical qualifications of the new operating company organization, therefore, would be at least l 5 1 l equivalent to those of the existing organization. l 1

Under the proposed arrangement, ownership of STP would remain unchanged, I with each owner retaining its current ownership interest. The new operating i

company would not own any portion of STP. Likewise, the owners' entitlement l f to capacity and energy from STP would not.be affected by the proposed change in operating res S sibility for STP from HL&P to the new op'erating company.

The owners would continue to provide all funds for operation, maintenance, and l l

l decommissioning by the operating company of STP. The responsibility of the owners would include funding for any emergency situations that might arise at 4

l STP.

! _HL&P requested the Commission's approval of the transfer of operating i authority to a new operating company and issuance of conforming license amendments pursuant to 10 CFR 50.80 and 50.90. Notice of this application for approval and an opportunity for a hearing was published in the FEDERAL i

i

i 4

• i 3_ l l

REGISTER on November 7, 1996 (61 FR 57719), and an Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact was peblished in the FEDERAL REGISTER on November 18, 1996 (61 FR 58710).

Under 10 CFR 50.80, no license, or any right thereunder, shall be I transferred, directly or indirectly, through transfer of control of the license, unless the Commission shall give its consent in writing. Upon review of the information submitted in the letters of August 23, October 1 and 15, l 1996, and January 28, 1997, and other information before the Commission, the NRC staff has determined that the proposed new operating company is qualified

) to hold the license:; to the extent and for the purposes described above, and

that the trcnsfer of the licenses as described above is otherwise consistent with applicable provisions of law, regulations, and orders issued by the Commission. These findings are supported by a Safety Evaluation dated i

i April 8, 1997.

! III.

j Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 105, 161b, 1611, and 184 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 42 USC ff 2135, 2201(b), 2201(1), and 2234, ,

and 10 CFR 50.80, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Commission consents to the transfer of the licenses as described herein to the proposed new operating company, subject to the following conditions:

(1) The new operating company, hereafter referred to as STPNOC [STP Nuclear Operating Company), shall not market or broker power or energy from South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2. The Owners are responsible and accountable for the actions of STPH0C to the extent that said actions affect the marketing or brokering of

power or enargy from South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2, and, in ,

any way, contravene the antitrust conditions in Appendix C of the licenses; and j (2) Should the formation of the new operating company and transfer of operating authority not be completed by March 31, 1998, this Order shall become null and void, provided, however, on application and j i

for good cause shown, such date may be extended. l This Order is effective upon issuance. 1 Action on the proposed conforming license amendments will be taken upon l implementation of the transfer approved by this Order.

For further details with respect to this Order, see the licensee's application dated August 23, 1996, as supplemented by letters dated October 1 and 15, 1996, and January 28, 1997, which are available for public inspection at the Commission's Public Document Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street, N.W., Washington, DC, and at the local public document room located at the Wharton County Junior College, J. M. Hodges Learning Center, 911 Boling Highway, Wharton, TX 77488.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 8th day of April 1997.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION t

a Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation