SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Discussion

Notice is hereby given that the NRC has issued Subsequent Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-23 to Duke for Robinson. Duke is the operator of the facility. Subsequent Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-23 authorizes Duke to operate Robinson at a reactor core power level not in excess of 2,339 megawatts thermal, in accordance with the provisions of the Robinson license and technical specifications. Notice is also given that the ROD that supports the NRC's decision to issue Subsequent Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-23 is available, and its location is listed in the “Availability of Documents” section of this document.

As discussed in the ROD and the final supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS), published as NUREG-1437, Supplement 13, Second Renewal, “Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants Regarding Subsequent License Renewal for H.B. Robinson Steam Electric Plant, Unit No. 2, Final Report,” dated March 2026, the final SEIS documents the NRC staff's environmental review, including the recommendation that the adverse environmental impacts of subsequent license renewal (SLR) for Robinson are not so great that preserving the option of SLR for energy-planning decision-makers would be unreasonable. This recommendation is based on (1) the analysis and findings in the NRC's Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, (2) information provided in the environmental report submitted by Duke, (3) the NRC staff's consultation with Federal, State, and local governmental agencies and Indian Tribes, (4) the NRC staff's independent environmental review, and (5) the NRC staff's consideration of public comments received during the scoping process and on the draft SEIS.

Robinson consists of one Westinghouse three-loop pressurized-water reactor located near Hartsville, South Carolina. Duke submitted its SLR application for Robinson on April 1, 2025, which it supplemented by letters through October 1, 2025 (see the “Availability of Documents” section of this document). The NRC staff has determined that Duke's SLR application complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the NRC's regulations. As required by the Act and NRC regulations in title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Chapter I, “Nuclear Regulatory Commission,” the NRC has made appropriate findings, which are set forth in the subsequent renewed license.

Notice of the NRC's acceptance for docketing of the SLR application and an opportunity to request a hearing was published in the Federal Register on May 8, 2025 (90 FR 19535). A notice of intent to conduct environmental scoping was published on May 22, 2025 (90 FR 21952). In April 2026, the NRC staff issued its safety evaluation concerning the Robinson SLR application. In December 2025, the NRC staff published a draft SEIS for public comment, providing the preliminary results of the staff's environmental review of the Robinson SLR application. A notice of availability of the draft SEIS was published in the Federal Register on January 9, 2026 (91 FR 1007). In March 2026, the NRC staff published the final SEIS; a notice of issuance was published in the Federal Register on March 20, 2026 (91 FR 13644).

For further details with respect to this action, see (1) Duke's SLR application for Robinson, dated April 1, 2025, as supplemented by letters dated through October 1, 2025, (2) the NRC's safety ( printed page 22875) evaluation, dated April 2026, (3) the NRC's final SEIS, dated March 2026, and (4) the NRC's ROD, dated April 23, 2026.

II. Availability of Documents

The documents identified in the following table are available to interested persons through ADAMS, as indicated.

Authority:42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.

91 FR 22874