82 FR 18487 - In the Matter of Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation: Wolf Creek Generating Station, Unit 1

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 74 (April 19, 2017)

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an order approving indirect license transfer of control of Renewed Facility Operating License No. NPF-42 for the Wolf Creek Generating Station (WCGS). The indirect transfer of control will result from the proposed merger of Great Plains Energy Incorporated (Great Plains) and Westar Energy, Inc. (Westar) pursuant to the terms of the merger agreement, with Westar merging and becoming a subsidiary of Great Plains. Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation will continue to be the operator of WCGS.

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 74 (Wednesday, April 19, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18487-18488]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-07894]



[[Page 18487]]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-482; License No. NPF-42; NRC-2016-0234]


In the Matter of Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation: Wolf 
Creek Generating Station, Unit 1

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Indirect transfer of license; order.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an 
order approving indirect license transfer of control of Renewed 
Facility Operating License No. NPF-42 for the Wolf Creek Generating 
Station (WCGS). The indirect transfer of control will result from the 
proposed merger of Great Plains Energy Incorporated (Great Plains) and 
Westar Energy, Inc. (Westar) pursuant to the terms of the merger 
agreement, with Westar merging and becoming a subsidiary of Great 
Plains. Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation will continue to be 
the operator of WCGS.

DATES: The Order was issued on April 7, 2017, and is effective for one 
year.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2016-0234 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may obtain publicly-available information related to this document 
using any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2016-0234. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact 
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this document.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the 
ADAMS Public Documents collection at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and 
then select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, 
please contact the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 
1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or by email to [email protected]. The 
ADAMS accession number for each document referenced (if it is available 
in ADAMS) is provided the first time that it is mentioned in this 
document. The order was issued to the licensee in a letter dated April 
7, 2017, and it is available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML17037D120).
     NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public 
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Balwant K. Singal, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-3016, email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the order is attached.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 11th day of April 2017.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Balwant K. Singal,
Senior Project Manager, Plant Licensing Branch IV, Division of 
Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

Attachment--Order Approving Indirect Transfer of License

United States of America

Nuclear Regulatory Commission

In the Matter of Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation; Wolf Creek 
Generating Station, Unit 1 Dockets No. 50-482 License No. NPF-42 Order 
Approving Indirect Transfer of License

I.

    Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation (WCNOC) is the holder of 
the Renewed Facility Operating License (FOL) No. NPF-42 for the Wolf 
Creek Generating Station, Unit 1 (WCGS) authorized to possess, use, and 
operate WCGS. WCGS is located in Coffey County, Kansas.

II.

    Pursuant to Section 184 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 
amended (AEA), and Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) 
50.80, ``Transfer of licenses,'' WCNOC requested consent from the U.S. 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to the indirect transfer of control 
of Renewed FOL No. NPF-42 for the WCGS by application dated July 22, 
2016 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) 
Accession No. ML16208A250).
    WCNOC is the licensed operator of WCGS and Kansas City Power & 
Light Company (KCP&L), Kansas Gas and Electric Company (KG&E), and 
Kansas Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. (KEPCO) are the three non-
operating owner licensees. KCP&L and KG&E each hold a 47 percent 
undivided interest in WCGS and 47 percent of the stock of WCNOC and 
KEPCO holds the remaining 6 percent interest. KCP&L is a subsidiary of 
Great Plains Energy Incorporated (Great Plains) and KG&E is a 
subsidiary of Westar Energy, Inc. (Westar). The indirect transfer of 
control will result from the proposed merger of Great Plains and Westar 
with Westar becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of Great Plains. KCP&L 
and KG&E will each continue to hold their respective 47 percent 
interests in WCNOC and WCGS. KCP&L and KG&E will continue to operate as 
separate electric utilities responsible for their pro rata shares of 
the costs of operating WCGS and entitled to their pro rata shares of 
the capacity, energy, and other energy products produced by WCGS. Great 
Plains will indirectly own a combined interest in WCGS of 94 percent. 
The remaining 6 percent ownership interest will continue to be held by 
KEPCO. WCNOC will continue to be the operator of WCGS with the same 
management team as in effect prior to the consummation of the proposed 
merger.
    In response to the submission of the indirect license transfer 
application, the NRC published in the Federal Register a notice 
entitled, ``Wolf Creek Generating Station; Consideration of Approval of 
Transfer of License,'' on November 17, 2016 (81 FR 81176). In a letter 
dated December 13, 2016 (ADAMS Accession No. ML17079A255), KEPCO 
submitted a public comment in response to this notice, which stated, in 
part, that:

    The purpose of this letter is to clarify statements in the 
Request [by WCNOC for NRC consent to the indirect transfer] about 
KEPCO's ownership interest and to make clear that the Request was 
not filed on behalf of all the owners of [WCNOC and WCGS].
    . . . While KEPCO would continue to own 6% of [WCGS] and WCNOC, 
WCNOC's assertion that KEPCO's ownership interests would be 
unaffected is inaccurate. The nature of KEPCO's ownership interest 
is more than the simple percentage; it was negotiated as part of an 
overall structure where none of the three owners commanded the 
majority necessary to unilaterally make important decisions. KEPCO's 
6% interest as it currently exists provides KEPCO with substantial 
influence over the financial and strategic planning for and the 
oversight of [WCGS] and WCNOC. By contrast, in the post-merger world 
one company would own 94% of [WCGS] and WCNOC through its affiliated 
subsidiaries, which would undoubtedly affect how the two previously 
independent owners would manage their interests in and control of 
[WCGS] (and WCNOC).

    The NRC staff reviewed KEPCO's letter as part of its review of the 
WCNOC request for consent to the proposed indirect license transfer. 
The

[[Page 18488]]

staff notes that, in its application, WCNOC stated that:

    The remaining 6.0% ownership interest in WCGS held by [KEPCO] is 
unaffected by the Merger.

    The proposed merger will result in one entity, Great Plains, 
indirectly owning a combined interest in WCGS of 94 percent, as opposed 
to two entities, Great Plains and Westar, each indirectly owning a 47 
percent interest in WCGS. This does not affect the fact that, in either 
case, KEPCO indirectly owns a 6 percent interest in WCGS. Whether, as 
provided by KEPCO, the proposed merger will decrease KEPCO's influence 
over the financial and strategic planning for WCGS is not relevant to 
the NRC's review of the proposed indirect license transfer application 
under AEA Section 184 and 10 CFR 50.80. The NRC's authority with 
respect to license transfer applications is limited to evaluating 
financial qualification, decommissioning funding assurance, management 
and technical support organization, operating organization, foreign 
ownership, control, or domination, and nuclear insurance and indemnity 
issues as they relate to the public health and safety and the common 
defense and security. The relevant NRC regulatory requirements do not 
apply to strategic business or other corporate decisions and 
considerations. Accordingly, the NRC staff concludes that the concerns 
identified by KEPCO do not impact its conclusion regarding the proposed 
indirect license transfer application.
    Under 10 CFR 50.80, no license, or any right thereunder, shall be 
transferred, either directly or indirectly, through transfer of control 
of the license, unless the NRC gives its consent in writing. Upon 
review of the information in the application, and other information 
before the Commission, the NRC staff has determined that WCNOC is 
qualified to hold the license following the proposed merger of Great 
Plains and Westar with Westar becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of 
Great Plains. The NRC staff has also determined that the proposed 
indirect license transfer is otherwise consistent with applicable 
provisions of law, regulations, and orders issued by the Commission 
pursuant thereto.
    The findings set forth above are supported by an NRC safety 
evaluation dated April 7, 2017, and available under ADAMS Accession No. 
ML17037D120.

III.

    Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 161b, 161i, and 184 of the Atomic 
Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 2201(b), 2201(i), and 2234; 
and 10 CFR 50.80, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the application regarding 
the proposed indirect license transfer is approved.
    IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, after receipt of all required 
regulatory approvals of the proposed indirect license transfer, WCNOC 
shall inform the Director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation 
in writing of such receipt, and of the date of closing of the transfer, 
no later than 5 business days prior to the date of the closing of the 
indirect license transfer. Should the proposed indirect license 
transfer not be completed within 1 year of this Order's date of 
issuance, this Order shall become null and void, provided, however, 
upon written application and for good cause shown, such date may be 
extended by order.
    This Order is effective upon issuance.
    For further details with respect to this Order, see the application 
dated July 22, 2016 (ADAMS Accession No. ML16208A250), and the NRC 
Safety Evaluation dated April 7, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML17037D120), which are available for public inspection at the 
Commission's Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint 
North, Public File Area O1 F21, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), 
Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available documents created or received 
at the NRC are accessible electronically through ADAMS in the NRC 
Library at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Persons who do not 
have access to ADAMS, or who encounter problems in accessing the 
documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC PDR reference staff 
by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by email to 
[email protected].

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 7th day of April 2017.
    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Mary Jane Ross-Lee,
Acting Director, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of 
Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2017-07894 Filed 4-18-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P