RIS 2023-02, Scheduling Information for the Licensing of Accident Tolerant, Increased Enrichment, and Higher Burnup Fuels: Difference between revisions

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{{#Wiki_filter:OMB Control No.:  3150-0258 Expires:  4/30/2026
{{#Wiki_filter:ML23123A166 OMB Control No.:  3150-0258 Expires:  4/30/2026  


UNITED STATES
UNITED STATES  
                        NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION  
                    OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION
OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION  
              OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY AND SAFEGUARDS
OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY AND SAFEGUARDS  
                            WASHINGTON, DC  20555-0001
WASHINGTON, DC  20555-0001  


June 26, 2023
June 26, 2023  


NRC REGULATORY ISSUE SUMMARY 2023-02 SCHEDULING INFORMATION FOR THE LICENSING OF ACCIDENT TOLERANT,
NRC REGULATORY ISSUE SUMMARY 2023-02 SCHEDULING INFORMATION FOR THE LICENSING OF ACCIDENT TOLERANT,  
              INCREASED ENRICHMENT, AND HIGHER BURNUP FUELS
INCREASED ENRICHMENT, AND HIGHER BURNUP FUELS  


==ADDRESSEES==
==ADDRESSEES==
All holders of operating licenses for nuclear power reactors un  der the provisions of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, Domestic Licensing of Production and Utilization Facilities, or holders of a combined license under   10 CFR Part 52, Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants, except   those that have permanently ceased operations and have certified that fuel has been permane  ntly removed from the reactor vessel.
All holders of operating licenses for nuclear power reactors under the provisions of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, Domestic Licensing of Production and Utilization Facilities, or holders of a combined license under 10 CFR Part 52, Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants, except those that have permanently ceased operations and have certified that fuel has been permanently removed from the reactor vessel.


All holders of licenses and potential applicants for a fuel cyc  le facility under the provisions of
All holders of licenses and potential applicants for a fuel cycle facility under the provisions of  
10 CFR Part 70, Domestic Licensing of Special Nuclear Material , and holders of licenses and Certificates of Compliance (CoC) and potential applicants for t  ransportation and storage systems under the provisions of 10 CFR Part 71, Packaging and   Transportation of Radioactive Material, and 10 CFR Part 72, Licensing Requirements for the   Independent Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel, High-Level Radioactive Waste, and Reactor-Related   Greater than Class C
10 CFR Part 70, Domestic Licensing of Special Nuclear Material, and holders of licenses and Certificates of Compliance (CoC) and potential applicants for transportation and storage systems under the provisions of 10 CFR Part 71, Packaging and Transportation of Radioactive Material, and 10 CFR Part 72, Licensing Requirements for the Independent Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel, High-Level Radioactive Waste, and Reactor-Related Greater than Class C  
Waste.
Waste.


==INTENT==
==INTENT==
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing this re gulatory issue summary (RIS)
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing this regulatory issue summary (RIS)  
to assist the NRC in determining budgetary and technical resour ce needs with respect to the licensing of reactor fuels with accident tolerant fuel (ATF) co  ncepts, higher burnup, and increased enrichment and any c hanges in previously announced pl ans to license the use of these technologies.
to assist the NRC in determining budgetary and technical resource needs with respect to the licensing of reactor fuels with accident tolerant fuel (ATF) concepts, higher burnup, and increased enrichment and any changes in previously announced plans to license the use of these technologies.


Additionally, this RIS is intended to promote early communicati  on between the NRC and licensees and potential applicants about the planned licensing   of reactor fuel with ATF
Additionally, this RIS is intended to promote early communication between the NRC and licensees and potential applicants about the planned licensing of reactor fuel with ATF  
concepts, increased enrichment, and higher burnup. This RIS doe  s not transmit or imply any new or changed requirements or staff positions. Although no spe  cific action or written response is required, submission of the requested information will enabl  e the NRC to plan its licensing activities more efficiently and effectively.
concepts, increased enrichment, and higher burnup. This RIS does not transmit or imply any new or changed requirements or staff positions. Although no specific action or written response is required, submission of the requested information will enable the NRC to plan its licensing activities more efficiently and effectively.
 
ML23123A166


==BACKGROUND INFORMATION==
==BACKGROUND INFORMATION==
The U.S. Congress has provided funding through the U.S. Departm ent of Energy to support the development and deployment of fuels containing ATF concepts, in  creased enrichment, and higher burnup. The NRC understands that the industrys goal is   to begin deploying fuels with combinations of these technologies in existing nuclear power re  actors by the mid-to-late 2020s.
The U.S. Congress has provided funding through the U.S. Department of Energy to support the development and deployment of fuels containing ATF concepts, increased enrichment, and higher burnup. The NRC understands that the industrys goal is to begin deploying fuels with combinations of these technologies in existing nuclear power reactors by the mid-to-late 2020s.


The NRC encourages licensees and vendors to engage early with t he NRC staff so that potential technical or policy issues can be identified before a  n application is submitted. Given this interest, the NRC is seeking additional information to for  ecast its project workload. The NRC
The NRC encourages licensees and vendors to engage early with the NRC staff so that potential technical or policy issues can be identified before an application is submitted. Given this interest, the NRC is seeking additional information to forecast its project workload. The NRC  
will use the information obtained from this RIS to inform its b  udgetary and technical resource allocation planning.
will use the information obtained from this RIS to inform its budgetary and technical resource allocation planning.


==SUMMARY OF ISSUE==
==SUMMARY OF ISSUE==
The NRC encourages licensees and pot ential applicants to provide the agency with scheduling information for preapplication activities and licensing submitt  als for ATF, increased enrichment, and higher burnup fuel. This inform ation will allow the NRC to better allocate its budgetary and technical resources to perform timely and effective reviews of   such applications.
The NRC encourages licensees and potential applicants to provide the agency with scheduling information for preapplication activities and licensing submittals for ATF, increased enrichment, and higher burnup fuel. This information will allow the NRC to better allocate its budgetary and technical resources to perform timely and effective reviews of such applications.


==VOLUNTARY RESPONSE==
==VOLUNTARY RESPONSE==
The NRC staff has developed several questions on the scheduling   of activities related to ATF, increased enrichment, and higher burnup fuel. The NRC will   use addressees responses to help determine resource allocation and prioritizat  ion for such applications that will be submitted in upcoming fiscal years.
The NRC staff has developed several questions on the scheduling of activities related to ATF, increased enrichment, and higher burnup fuel. The NRC will use addressees responses to help determine resource allocation and prioritization for such applications that will be submitted in upcoming fiscal years.
 
The NRC may share the application schedules with other Federal  agencies to support its planning for reviewing licensing submittals for ATF, increased  enrichment, and higher burnup fuels. If a prospective applicant deems this information propri  etary, a request to withhold information from public disclosure in accordance with 10 CFR 2.  390, Public inspections, exemptions, requests for withholding, must accompany the infor mation.          RIS 2004-11, Supporting Information Associated with Requests for Withholdin  g Proprietary Information, dated June 29, 2004 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management  System (ADAMS)
Accession No. ML041180231), provides additional information abo  ut requests for withholding proprietary information from public disclosure. The NRC asks po  tential applicants to request withholding only for information that is currently treated as p  roprietary and to provide, where necessary, the proprietary information in designated attachment  s to their response to this RIS.
 
If an addressee chooses to provide a voluntary response, the NR  C would like to obtain the information within 60 days of the date of this RIS. Respondents  should answer the questions below to the best of their ability, providing as much detail as  possible.
 
The NRC staff recognizes that the addressees ability to respon  d to these questions depends, in part, on the stage of submittal preparation. In some cases,  addressees may not be able to respond to all questions at this time. With this in mind, the N  RC staff also encourages voluntary updates to initial responses to this RIS as significa  nt scheduling changes occur. The NRC seeks voluntary responses to the following questions, as applicable:


(1)                                                                      Do you plan to submit a license amendment request to adopt  fuel with increased enrichment, higher burnup, or one or more ATF concepts, or a li  cense amendment request for lead test assemblies with one or more of these tech  nologies? If so, what technologies will the fuel include, and what is the timeframe f  or submitting the request?
The NRC may share the application schedules with other Federal agencies to support its planning for reviewing licensing submittals for ATF, increased enrichment, and higher burnup fuels. If a prospective applicant deems this information proprietary, a request to withhold information from public disclosure in accordance with 10 CFR 2.390, Public inspections, exemptions, requests for withholding, must accompany the information. RIS 2004-11, Supporting Information Associated with Requests for Withholding Proprietary Information, dated June 29, 2004 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS)
Accession No. ML041180231), provides additional information about requests for withholding proprietary information from public disclosure. The NRC asks potential applicants to request withholding only for information that is currently treated as proprietary and to provide, where necessary, the proprietary information in designated attachments to their response to this RIS.


(2)                                                                      Do you plan to submit any additional, related licensing act  ions (e.g., requests for exemption) to support transition to one or more of these fuel t  ypes? If so, what additional licensing request(s) do you plan to submit, and what is the tim  eframe for submitting the request(s)?
If an addressee chooses to provide a voluntary response, the NRC would like to obtain the information within 60 days of the date of this RIS. Respondents should answer the questions below to the best of their ability, providing as much detail as possible.


(3)                                                                      Do you anticipate that applications for new fuel concepts c  ould benefit from modification or enhancement of existing NRC guidance or creatio  n of new guidance?
The NRC staff recognizes that the addressees ability to respond to these questions depends, in part, on the stage of submittal preparation. In some cases, addressees may not be able to respond to all questions at this time. With this in mind, the NRC staff also encourages voluntary updates to initial responses to this RIS as significant scheduling changes occur. The NRC seeks voluntary responses to the following questions, as applicable:
        If so, which guidance documents could be considered for modific  ation or what type of new guidance could be developed and for what purpose?


(4)                                                                     Existing fuel facility licensees and CoC holders of transpo  rtation and storage systems:
(1)  
        Do you plan to submit a license amendment request to allow enri  chment, fuel fabrication, and transportation of material with ATF concepts,  increased enrichment, or higher burnup? If so, what is the increased enrichment limit r  equested, what technologies will the material include, and what is the timefra  me for submitting the request?
Do you plan to submit a license amendment request to adopt fuel with increased enrichment, higher burnup, or one or more ATF concepts, or a license amendment request for lead test assemblies with one or more of these technologies? If so, what technologies will the fuel include, and what is the timeframe for submitting the request?  


(5)                                                                     New fuel facility licensee and CoC applicants of transporta  tion and storage systems: Do you plan to submit a new application to allow fuel fabrication,   and transportation of material with ATF concepts, increased enrichment, or higher bur  nup? If so, what is the enrichment limit, what technologies will the material include,   and what is the timeframe for submitting the request?
(2)
Do you plan to submit any additional, related licensing actions (e.g., requests for exemption) to support transition to one or more of these fuel types? If so, what additional licensing request(s) do you plan to submit, and what is the timeframe for submitting the request(s)?
(3)
Do you anticipate that applications for new fuel concepts could benefit from modification or enhancement of existing NRC guidance or creation of new guidance?
If so, which guidance documents could be considered for modification or what type of new guidance could be developed and for what purpose?
(4)
Existing fuel facility licensees and CoC holders of transportation and storage systems:
Do you plan to submit a license amendment request to allow enrichment, fuel fabrication, and transportation of material with ATF concepts, increased enrichment, or higher burnup?  If so, what is the increased enrichment limit requested, what technologies will the material include, and what is the timeframe for submitting the request?
(5)  
New fuel facility licensee and CoC applicants of transportation and storage systems: Do you plan to submit a new application to allow fuel fabrication, and transportation of material with ATF concepts, increased enrichment, or higher burnup? If so, what is the enrichment limit, what technologies will the material include, and what is the timeframe for submitting the request?  


==BACKFITTING AND ISSUE FINALITY DISCUSSION==
==BACKFITTING AND ISSUE FINALITY DISCUSSION==
This RIS requests the addressees to inform the NRC of its plans   regarding the potential use of ATF, increased enrichment and higher burnup fuels, and the enri  chment, manufacturing, and transportation of fuels with higher enrichment. This RIS reques  ts the addressees to voluntarily provide information to assist the NRC in the administrative tas  ks of budgeting and resource allocation. This constitutes information collection and reporti  ng and is not within the purview of the Backfit Rule, in accordance with 10 CFR 50.109, Backfittin  g, 10 CFR 70.76, Backfitting,
This RIS requests the addressees to inform the NRC of its plans regarding the potential use of ATF, increased enrichment and higher burnup fuels, and the enrichment, manufacturing, and transportation of fuels with higher enrichment. This RIS requests the addressees to voluntarily provide information to assist the NRC in the administrative tasks of budgeting and resource allocation. This constitutes information collection and reporting and is not within the purview of the Backfit Rule, in accordance with 10 CFR 50.109, Backfitting, 10 CFR 70.76, Backfitting,  
10 CFR 72.62, Backfitting, or any of the issue finality provi  sions in 10 CFR Part 52. In addition, this RIS does not require any action or written response from t  he addressees. Any action on the part of addressees to collect and transmit information in accor  dance with the request contained in this RIS is strictly voluntary. For these reasons, the NRC s taff did not perform a backfit analysis for this RIS or further address any issue finality cri  teria in 10 CFR Part 52.
10 CFR 72.62, Backfitting, or any of the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR Part 52. In addition, this RIS does not require any action or written response from the addressees. Any action on the part of addressees to collect and transmit information in accordance with the request contained in this RIS is strictly voluntary. For these reasons, the NRC staff did not perform a backfit analysis for this RIS or further address any issue finality criteria in 10 CFR Part 52.


===FEDERAL REGISTER NOTIFICATION===
===FEDERAL REGISTER NOTIFICATION===
The NRC did not publish a notice of opportunity for public comm ent on this RIS in the Federal Register, because the RIS pertains to an administrative aspect of the r  egulatory process that involves the voluntary submission of information on the part of addressees and does not represent a departure from current regulatory requirements.
The NRC did not publish a notice of opportunity for public comment on this RIS in the Federal Register, because the RIS pertains to an administrative aspect of the regulatory process that involves the voluntary submission of information on the part of addressees and does not represent a departure from current regulatory requirements.


===CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW ACT===
===CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW ACT===
The NRC staff have determined that this RIS is not a rule as de fined in the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801-808).
The NRC staff have determined that this RIS is not a rule as defined in the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801-808).  


===PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT STATEMENT===
===PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT STATEMENT===
This RIS contains voluntary information collections that are su  bject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). The Office of Management   and Budget (OMB) approved these information collections (approval number 3150-0258). The   burden to the public for these information collections is estimated to average 20 hours per in  itial response and 10 hours for subsequent updates. Send comments regarding this information co  llection to the FOIA, Library, and Information Collections Branch, Office of the Chief Informa  tion Officer, Mail Stop: T6-A10M,
This RIS contains voluntary information collections that are subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved these information collections (approval number 3150-0258). The burden to the public for these information collections is estimated to average 20 hours per initial response and 10 hours for subsequent updates. Send comments regarding this information collection to the FOIA, Library, and Information Collections Branch, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Mail Stop: T6-A10M,  
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001,   or by e-mail to Infocollects.Resource@nrc.gov , and to the OMB reviewer at: OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (3150-0258), Attn: Desk Officer for the Nucl  ear Regulatory Commission,
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, or by e-mail to Infocollects.Resource@nrc.gov, and to the OMB reviewer at: OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (3150-0258), Attn: Desk Officer for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission,  
725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503; email: oira_submission@omb.eop.gov.
725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503; email: oira_submission@omb.eop.gov.


Public Protection Notification
Public Protection Notification  


The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not require  d to respond to, an information collection unless t he requesting document displays a currently valid OMB control number.
The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, an information collection unless the requesting document displays a currently valid OMB control number.


==CONTACT==
==CONTACT==
Please direct any questions about this matter to the technical   contacts listed below.
Please direct any questions about this matter to the technical contacts listed below.
 
/RA/
 
/RA/
Russell Felts, Director 
 
Shana Helton, Director Division of Reactor Oversight,
 
Division of Fuel Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
 
Office of Nuclear Materials Safety and [Removed]
 
Technical Contacts: Daniel King, NRR
 
Jason Piotter, NMSS
301-415-1233 
 
301-415-7739 E-mail:Daniel.King@nrc.gov E-mail:Jason.Piotter@nrc.gov 
 
Note:  NRC generic communications may be found on the NRC public Web site, http://www.nrc.gov, under NRC Library/Document Collections.
 
ML23123A166


/RA/      /RA/
EPID No. L-2023-GEN-0004 OFFICE
RussellFelts,Director    S                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        hana Helton, Director Division of Reactor Oversight,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Division of Fuel Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Office of Nuclear Materi  als Safety and [Removed]
NRR/DORL/LLPB/PM NRR/DORL/LLPB/PM
OE/EB/BC
QTE
NAME
DKing Croque-Cruz JPeralta JDougherty DATE
      5/4/23     
      5/5/23     
      5/11/23     
4/28/     
OFFICE
NRR/DORL/LPMB/BC NMSS/DFM/CTCFB/B
NMSS/REFS/D
NMSS/DFM/D
NAME
GGeorge DMarcano CRegan SHelton DATE
      5/11/23        
5/16/23
5/25/23
5/25/23 OFFICE
NRR/DRA/D
NRR/DORL/D
NRR/DSS/D
RES/DSA/D
NAME
MFranovich BPham JDonoghue KWebber DATE
5/30/23
5/24/23
5/24/23
5/24/23 OFFICE
OGC (NLO)
NRR/DRO/IOEB/PM
NRR/DRO/IOEB/PM
NRR/DRO/IOEB/LA
NAME


Technical Contacts:              Daniel King, NRR                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Jason Piotter, NMSS
BBenney PClark IBetts DATE
                                          301-415-1233                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        301-415-7739 E-mail:Daniel.King@nrc.gov                                                                                                                                        E-mail:Jason.Piotter@nrc.gov
6/8/23
6/1/23
6/1/23
5/30/23 OFFICE
NRR/DRO/IOEB
NRR/DRMA/MIST
OCIO/GEMS/ISB
NMSS/DFM/CTCFB
NAME
LRegner LHill DCullison JPiotter DATE
6/16/23
6/2/23
6/5/23
6/20/23 OFFICE
NMSS/DFM/CTCFB
NMSS/DFM/D
NRR/DRO/D


Note:  NRC generic communications may be found on the NRC publi c Web site, http://www.nrc.gov, under NRC Library/Document Collections.
NAME
DMarcano SHelton RFelts


ML23123A166                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                EPID No. L-2023-GEN-0004 OFFICE                                  NRR/DORL/LLPB/PM                        NRR/DORL/LLPB/PM                                                                                                                OE/EB/BC                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          QTE
DATE  
    NAME                                                                                                                                                                                            DKing                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Croque-Cruz                                                                                                                                                                                                          JPeralta                                                                                                                                                                                                                    JDougherty DATE                                                                                                                                                                           5/4/23                                                                                                                                                                        5/5/23                                                                                                                                                          5/11/23                                                                                                                                                                                        4/28/
5/16/23  
    OFFICE                              NRR/DORL/LPMB/BC                  NMSS/DFM/CTCFB/B                                                                              NMSS/REFS/D                                                                                                                                      NMSS/DFM/D
6/26/23
    NAME                                                                                                                                                                  GGeorge                                                                                                                                                                                                                        DMarcano                                                                                                                                                                                                                              CRegan                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                SHelton DATE                                                                                                                                                                  5/11/23                                                                                                                                                                      5/16/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      5/25/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        5/25/23 OFFICE                                                                                                            NRR/DRA/D                                                                                                                                                                  NRR/DORL/D                                                                                                                                                                NRR/DSS/D                                                                                                                                                                                RES/DSA/D
6/26/23
    NAME                                                                                                                                              MFranovich                                                                                                                                                                                                                            BPham                                                                                                                                                                                                                            JDonoghue                                                                                                                                                                                                            KWebber DATE                                                                                                                                                                                        5/30/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              5/24/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          5/24/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          5/24/23 OFFICE                                                                                                                  OGC (NLO)                                                                                                                    NRR/DRO/IOEB/PM                                            NRR/DRO/IOEB/PM                                                NRR/DRO/IOEB/LA
    NAME                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            BBenney                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    PClark                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                IBetts DATE                                                                                                                                                                                                  6/8/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  6/1/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              6/1/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    5/30/23 OFFICE                                                                            NRR/DRO/IOEB                                                                                                  NRR/DRMA/MIST                                                                                        OCIO/GEMS/ISB                                                                        NMSS/DFM/CTCFB
    NAME                                                                                                                                                                        LRegner                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                LHill                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    DCullison                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          JPiotter DATE                                                                                                                                                                                        6/16/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       6/2/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              6/5/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    6/20/23 OFFICE                                                NMSS/DFM/CTCFB                                                                                                    NMSS/DFM/D                                                                                                                                                          NRR/DRO/D
    NAME                                                                                                                                                          DMarcano                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  SHelton                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              RFelts DATE                                                                                                                                                                                        5/16/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              6/26/23                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 6/26/23
}}
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{{RIS-Nav}}
{{RIS-Nav}}

Latest revision as of 05:34, 27 November 2024

Scheduling Information for the Licensing of Accident Tolerant, Increased Enrichment, and Higher Burnup Fuels
ML23123A166
Person / Time
Issue date: 06/26/2023
From: Phyllis Clark
NRC/NRR/DRO/IOEB
To:
References
OMB 3150-0258 RIS 2023-02
Download: ML23123A166 (5)
v • d • e


ML23123A166 OMB Control No.: 3150-0258 Expires: 4/30/2026

UNITED STATES

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION

OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY AND SAFEGUARDS

WASHINGTON, DC 20555-0001

June 26, 2023

NRC REGULATORY ISSUE SUMMARY 2023-02 SCHEDULING INFORMATION FOR THE LICENSING OF ACCIDENT TOLERANT,

INCREASED ENRICHMENT, AND HIGHER BURNUP FUELS

ADDRESSEES

All holders of operating licenses for nuclear power reactors under the provisions of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, Domestic Licensing of Production and Utilization Facilities, or holders of a combined license under 10 CFR Part 52, Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants, except those that have permanently ceased operations and have certified that fuel has been permanently removed from the reactor vessel.

All holders of licenses and potential applicants for a fuel cycle facility under the provisions of

10 CFR Part 70, Domestic Licensing of Special Nuclear Material, and holders of licenses and Certificates of Compliance (CoC) and potential applicants for transportation and storage systems under the provisions of 10 CFR Part 71, Packaging and Transportation of Radioactive Material, and 10 CFR Part 72, Licensing Requirements for the Independent Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel, High-Level Radioactive Waste, and Reactor-Related Greater than Class C

Waste.

INTENT

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing this regulatory issue summary (RIS)

to assist the NRC in determining budgetary and technical resource needs with respect to the licensing of reactor fuels with accident tolerant fuel (ATF) concepts, higher burnup, and increased enrichment and any changes in previously announced plans to license the use of these technologies.

Additionally, this RIS is intended to promote early communication between the NRC and licensees and potential applicants about the planned licensing of reactor fuel with ATF

concepts, increased enrichment, and higher burnup. This RIS does not transmit or imply any new or changed requirements or staff positions. Although no specific action or written response is required, submission of the requested information will enable the NRC to plan its licensing activities more efficiently and effectively.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

The U.S. Congress has provided funding through the U.S. Department of Energy to support the development and deployment of fuels containing ATF concepts, increased enrichment, and higher burnup. The NRC understands that the industrys goal is to begin deploying fuels with combinations of these technologies in existing nuclear power reactors by the mid-to-late 2020s.

The NRC encourages licensees and vendors to engage early with the NRC staff so that potential technical or policy issues can be identified before an application is submitted. Given this interest, the NRC is seeking additional information to forecast its project workload. The NRC

will use the information obtained from this RIS to inform its budgetary and technical resource allocation planning.

SUMMARY OF ISSUE

The NRC encourages licensees and potential applicants to provide the agency with scheduling information for preapplication activities and licensing submittals for ATF, increased enrichment, and higher burnup fuel. This information will allow the NRC to better allocate its budgetary and technical resources to perform timely and effective reviews of such applications.

VOLUNTARY RESPONSE

The NRC staff has developed several questions on the scheduling of activities related to ATF, increased enrichment, and higher burnup fuel. The NRC will use addressees responses to help determine resource allocation and prioritization for such applications that will be submitted in upcoming fiscal years.

The NRC may share the application schedules with other Federal agencies to support its planning for reviewing licensing submittals for ATF, increased enrichment, and higher burnup fuels. If a prospective applicant deems this information proprietary, a request to withhold information from public disclosure in accordance with 10 CFR 2.390, Public inspections, exemptions, requests for withholding, must accompany the information. RIS 2004-11, Supporting Information Associated with Requests for Withholding Proprietary Information, dated June 29, 2004 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS)

Accession No. ML041180231), provides additional information about requests for withholding proprietary information from public disclosure. The NRC asks potential applicants to request withholding only for information that is currently treated as proprietary and to provide, where necessary, the proprietary information in designated attachments to their response to this RIS.

If an addressee chooses to provide a voluntary response, the NRC would like to obtain the information within 60 days of the date of this RIS. Respondents should answer the questions below to the best of their ability, providing as much detail as possible.

The NRC staff recognizes that the addressees ability to respond to these questions depends, in part, on the stage of submittal preparation. In some cases, addressees may not be able to respond to all questions at this time. With this in mind, the NRC staff also encourages voluntary updates to initial responses to this RIS as significant scheduling changes occur. The NRC seeks voluntary responses to the following questions, as applicable:

(1)

Do you plan to submit a license amendment request to adopt fuel with increased enrichment, higher burnup, or one or more ATF concepts, or a license amendment request for lead test assemblies with one or more of these technologies? If so, what technologies will the fuel include, and what is the timeframe for submitting the request?

(2)

Do you plan to submit any additional, related licensing actions (e.g., requests for exemption) to support transition to one or more of these fuel types? If so, what additional licensing request(s) do you plan to submit, and what is the timeframe for submitting the request(s)?

(3)

Do you anticipate that applications for new fuel concepts could benefit from modification or enhancement of existing NRC guidance or creation of new guidance?

If so, which guidance documents could be considered for modification or what type of new guidance could be developed and for what purpose?

(4)

Existing fuel facility licensees and CoC holders of transportation and storage systems:

Do you plan to submit a license amendment request to allow enrichment, fuel fabrication, and transportation of material with ATF concepts, increased enrichment, or higher burnup? If so, what is the increased enrichment limit requested, what technologies will the material include, and what is the timeframe for submitting the request?

(5)

New fuel facility licensee and CoC applicants of transportation and storage systems: Do you plan to submit a new application to allow fuel fabrication, and transportation of material with ATF concepts, increased enrichment, or higher burnup? If so, what is the enrichment limit, what technologies will the material include, and what is the timeframe for submitting the request?

BACKFITTING AND ISSUE FINALITY DISCUSSION

This RIS requests the addressees to inform the NRC of its plans regarding the potential use of ATF, increased enrichment and higher burnup fuels, and the enrichment, manufacturing, and transportation of fuels with higher enrichment. This RIS requests the addressees to voluntarily provide information to assist the NRC in the administrative tasks of budgeting and resource allocation. This constitutes information collection and reporting and is not within the purview of the Backfit Rule, in accordance with 10 CFR 50.109, Backfitting, 10 CFR 70.76, Backfitting,

10 CFR 72.62, Backfitting, or any of the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR Part 52. In addition, this RIS does not require any action or written response from the addressees. Any action on the part of addressees to collect and transmit information in accordance with the request contained in this RIS is strictly voluntary. For these reasons, the NRC staff did not perform a backfit analysis for this RIS or further address any issue finality criteria in 10 CFR Part 52.

FEDERAL REGISTER NOTIFICATION

The NRC did not publish a notice of opportunity for public comment on this RIS in the Federal Register, because the RIS pertains to an administrative aspect of the regulatory process that involves the voluntary submission of information on the part of addressees and does not represent a departure from current regulatory requirements.

CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW ACT

The NRC staff have determined that this RIS is not a rule as defined in the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801-808).

PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT STATEMENT

This RIS contains voluntary information collections that are subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved these information collections (approval number 3150-0258). The burden to the public for these information collections is estimated to average 20 hours2.314815e-4 days <br />0.00556 hours <br />3.306878e-5 weeks <br />7.61e-6 months <br /> per initial response and 10 hours1.157407e-4 days <br />0.00278 hours <br />1.653439e-5 weeks <br />3.805e-6 months <br /> for subsequent updates. Send comments regarding this information collection to the FOIA, Library, and Information Collections Branch, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Mail Stop: T6-A10M,

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, or by e-mail to Infocollects.Resource@nrc.gov, and to the OMB reviewer at: OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (3150-0258), Attn: Desk Officer for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission,

725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503; email: oira_submission@omb.eop.gov.

Public Protection Notification

The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, an information collection unless the requesting document displays a currently valid OMB control number.

CONTACT

Please direct any questions about this matter to the technical contacts listed below.

/RA/

/RA/

Russell Felts, Director

Shana Helton, Director Division of Reactor Oversight,

Division of Fuel Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Office of Nuclear Materials Safety and [Removed]

Technical Contacts: Daniel King, NRR

Jason Piotter, NMSS

301-415-1233

301-415-7739 E-mail:Daniel.King@nrc.gov E-mail:Jason.Piotter@nrc.gov

Note: NRC generic communications may be found on the NRC public Web site, http://www.nrc.gov, under NRC Library/Document Collections.

ML23123A166

EPID No. L-2023-GEN-0004 OFFICE

NRR/DORL/LLPB/PM NRR/DORL/LLPB/PM

OE/EB/BC

QTE

NAME

DKing Croque-Cruz JPeralta JDougherty DATE

5/4/23

5/5/23

5/11/23

4/28/

OFFICE

NRR/DORL/LPMB/BC NMSS/DFM/CTCFB/B

NMSS/REFS/D

NMSS/DFM/D

NAME

GGeorge DMarcano CRegan SHelton DATE

5/11/23

5/16/23

5/25/23

5/25/23 OFFICE

NRR/DRA/D

NRR/DORL/D

NRR/DSS/D

RES/DSA/D

NAME

MFranovich BPham JDonoghue KWebber DATE

5/30/23

5/24/23

5/24/23

5/24/23 OFFICE

OGC (NLO)

NRR/DRO/IOEB/PM

NRR/DRO/IOEB/PM

NRR/DRO/IOEB/LA

NAME

BBenney PClark IBetts DATE

6/8/23

6/1/23

6/1/23

5/30/23 OFFICE

NRR/DRO/IOEB

NRR/DRMA/MIST

OCIO/GEMS/ISB

NMSS/DFM/CTCFB

NAME

LRegner LHill DCullison JPiotter DATE

6/16/23

6/2/23

6/5/23

6/20/23 OFFICE

NMSS/DFM/CTCFB

NMSS/DFM/D

NRR/DRO/D

NAME

DMarcano SHelton RFelts

DATE

5/16/23

6/26/23

6/26/23


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