Mr. Eric McCartney 

Site Vice President 

Seabrook Station 

NextEra Energy 

626 Lafayette Rd. 

Seabrook, NH 0387 4 

UNITED STATES 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001 

October 12, 2016 

SUBJECT: SEABROOK STATION, UNIT NO. 1 -ACCEPTANCE OF REQUESTED 

LICENSING AMENDMENT ACTION RE: ALKALI-SILICA REACTION 

(CAC NO. MF8260) 

Dear Mr. McCartney: 

By letter dated August 1, 2016 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 

(ADAMS) Accession No. ML 16216A240), as supplemented by letter dated September 30, 2016 

(ADAMS Package Accession No. ML 16279A047), NextEra Energy Seabrook, LLC (NextEra) 

submitted a license amendment request for the Seabrook Station, Unit No. 1. The proposed 

amendment would revise the Seabrook Updated Final Safety Analysis Report to include 

methods for analyzing seismic Category I structures with concrete affected by an alkali-silica 

reaction. The purpose of this letter is to provide the results of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) staff's acceptance review of this amendment request. The acceptance 

review was performed to determine if there is sufficient technical information in scope and depth 

to allow the NRC staff to complete its detailed technical review. The acceptance review is also 

intended to identify whether the application has any readily apparent information insufficiencies 

in its characterization of the regulatory requirements or the licensing basis of the plant. 

Consistent with Section 50.90 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), an 

amendment to the license (including the technical specifications) must fully describe the 

changes requested, and following, as far as applicable, the form prescribed for original 

applications. Section 50.34 of 10 CFR addresses the content of technical information required. 

This section stipulates that the submittal address the design and operating characteristics, 

unusual or novel design features, and principal safety considerations. 

The NRC staff has reviewed your application, including the supplemental information provided 

in the September 30, 2016, letter, and concluded that it does provide technical information in 

sufficient detail to enable the NRC staff to complete its detailed technical review and make an 

independent assessment regarding the acceptability of the proposed amendment in terms of 

regulatory requirements and the protection of public health and safety and the environment. 

Given the lesser scope and depth of the acceptance review as compared to the detailed 

technical review, there may be instances in which issues that impact the NRC staff's ability to 

complete the detailed technical review are identified despite completion of an adequate 

acceptance review. You will be advised of any further information needed to support the NRC 

staff's detailed technical review by separate correspondence. 
E. McCartney - 2 -

Based on the information provided in your submittal and discussions during the pre-licensing 

meeting on June15, 216, the NRC staff has estimated that this licensing request will take 

approximately 2000 hours to complete. The NRC staff expects to complete this review in 

approximately 22 months, which is August 2018. If there are emergent complexities or 

challenges in our review that would cause changes to the initial forecasted completion date or 

significant changes in the forecasted hours, the reasons for the changes, along with the new 

estimates, will be communicated during the routine interactions with the assigned project 

manager. 

These estimates are based on the NRC staff's initial review of the application, and they could 

change due to several factors, including requests for additional information, unanticipated 

addition of scope to the review, and review by NRC advisory committees or hearing-related 

activities. Additional delay may occur if the submittal is provided to the NRC in advance or in 

parallel with industry program initiatives or pilot applications. 

If you have any questions, please contact me at (301) 415-2048 or Justin.Poole@nrc.gov. 

Docket No. 50-443 

cc: Distribution via Listserv 

Sincerely, 

-~/......,,,,_-L-___ 

/ 

Justin C. Poole, Project Manager 

Plant Licensing Branch 1-2 

Division of Operating Reactor Licensing 

Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation 
E. McCartney - 2 -

Based on the information provided in your submittal and discussions during the pre-licensing 

meeting on June15, 216, the NRC staff has estimated that this licensing request will take 

approximately 2000 hours to complete. The NRC staff expects to complete this review in 

approximately 22 months, which is August 2018. If there are emergent complexities or 

challenges in our review that would cause changes to the initial forecasted completion date or 

significant changes in the forecasted hours, the reasons for the changes, along with the new 

estimates, will be communicated during the routine interactions with the assigned project 

manager. 

These estimates are based on the NRC staff's initial review of the application, and they could 

change due to several factors, including requests for additional information, unanticipated 

addition of scope to the review, and review by NRC advisory committees or hearing-related 

activities. Additional delay may occur if the submittal is provided to the NRC in advance or in 

parallel with industry program initiatives or pilot applications. 

If you have any questions, please contact me at (301) 415-2048 or Justin.Poole@nrc.gov. 

Docket No. 50-443 

cc: Distribution via Listserv 

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Sincerely, 

/RA/ 

Justin C. Poole, Project Manager 

Plant Licensing Branch 1-2 

Division of Operating Reactor Licensing 

Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation 

ADAMS Accession No.: ML 16265A440 

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