NRC NEWS

 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

 Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200

 Washington, DC 20555-001 E-mail: opa@nrc.gov 

 Web Site: http://www.nrc.gov/OPA

No. 04-033 March 12, 2004

 NRC ANNOUNCES OPPORTUNITY FOR HEARING ON APPLICATION

 TO RENEW MILLSTONE NUCLEAR PLANT, UNITS 2 AND 3, OPERATING LICENSES

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has announced the opportunity to request a

hearing on the applications from Dominion Nuclear Connecticut, Inc. to renew the operating licenses

for Units 2 and 3 of the Millstone nuclear power plant for an additional 20 years beyond the period

specified in the current licenses.

Millstone is located in Waterford, Connecticut. The current operating licenses for Unit 2 and

Unit 3 expire on July 31, 2015, and November 25, 2025, respectively.

NRC staff have determined that Dominion Nuclear Connecticut, Inc. has submitted sufficient

information for the agency to formally “docket,” or file, the applications. Docketing the applications

does not preclude requesting additional information as the review proceeds, nor does it indicate

whether the Commission will grant or deny the applications.

Based on the Atomic Energy Act, NRC issues licenses for commercial power reactors to

operate for up to 40 years and allows these licenses to be renewed for another 20 years. A 40-year

license term was selected on the basis of economic and anti-trust considerations -- not technical

limitations.

The license renewal process proceeds along two tracks -- one for review of safety issues and

another for environmental issues. In addition to the public meeting held February 17 at Millstone,

several meetings will be held during the review process. 

The deadline for requesting participation in the hearing is May 11 (60 days after publication of

a Federal Register Notice, on March 12). By that date, petitions must be filed by anyone whose

interest may be affected by the license renewal, and who wishes to participate as a party in the

proceeding. Petitions for a hearing must be filed with the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear

Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemaking and Adjudications

Staff. They may also be delivered to the NRC Public Document Room at 11555 Rockville Pike,

Rockville, Maryland.
Copies of the petition should also be sent to:

-- Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC,

 20555-0001, and by fax, 301-415-3725, or e-mail, OGCMailCenter@nrc.gov ;

 -- Secretary of the Commission by fax, 301-415-1101, or e-mail to hearingdocket@nrc.gov

 and

 -- David A. Christian, Senior Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer, Dominion Nuclear

 Connecticut, Inc., Innsbrook Technical Center, 5000 Dominion Boulevard, Glen Allen,

 VA 23060-6711.

Additional information about the opportunity for a hearing may be found in the Federal

Register Notice. Copies of the license renewal applications are available on the NRC web site at this

address: 

http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/millstone.html .

 The documents are also available for inspection at the NRC’s Public Document Room in

Rockville, Maryland, and are available at the Waterford Public Library in Waterford, Connecticut, and

Three Rivers Community College, Thames River Campus in Norwich, Connecticut. 

For further information, contact Russell Arrighi or Johnny Eads, License Renewal Project

Manager, Division of Regulatory Improvement Programs, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop O11-F1, Washington, DC 20555; telephone 301-415-3936

and 301-415-1471, respectively.

 ###