SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Discussion

On July 14, 2026, Virginia Electric and Power Company, dba Dominion Energy Virginia (Dominion), filed with the NRC, pursuant to Section 103 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and part 52 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), “Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants,” an application to request that the NRC renew ESP-003 for an additional 20 years beyond the current November 27, 2027, expiration date or from the date of issuance, whichever is later.

In the case of the North Anna site, Dominion holds COL NPF-103 for a reactor designated as North Anna, Unit 3. In the renewal application for ESP-003, Dominion notified the NRC of its decision to place COL NPF-103 in deferred status. Dominion also included in its renewal application for ESP-003 a request for an exemption from the subsumption requirements of 10 CFR 52.26(d), “Duration of permit,” to provide for the renewal of the ESP in its entirety, rather than renewal of only the portions of ESP-003 not subsumed into NPF-103. Consistent with the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and NRC regulations, the NRC is not publishing a notice of opportunity for hearing on the exemption request. A notice of receipt and availability of this renewal application was previously published in the Federal Register on August 5, 2026 (91 FR 50560). Identical notices of receipt and availability were published for an additional 3 consecutive weeks thereafter.

The NRC staff has determined that Dominion has submitted sufficient information in accordance with 10 CFR 52.29(a), “Application for Renewal,” to bring up to date the information and data contained in the previous ESP application to enable the staff to undertake a review of the ESP renewal application, and that, therefore, the ESP renewal application is acceptable for docketing. The previous ESP application for the North Anna ESP site is available in ADAMS under package Accession No. ML062580096. The ( printed page 57935) current docket number, 52-008, for Early Site Permit No. ESP-003 will be retained. The renewal application was docketed on September 4, 2026. The NRC staff provided notice of the acceptance and docketing determination by letter dated September 4, 2026 (ADAMS Accession No. ML26215A405).

The NRC staff will perform a detailed technical review of the renewal application and document its findings in a safety evaluation. Docketing of the renewal application does not preclude the NRC staff from requesting additional information from the applicant as the review proceeds, nor does it predict whether the Commission will grant or deny the renewal application.

The NRC may grant the request to renew the permit only if the NRC makes the findings required by the Act and the Commission's rules and regulations. In accordance with 10 CFR 52.31, “Criteria for renewal,” the NRC shall grant the renewal only if it determines that: (1) the site complies with the Act, the Commission's regulations, and orders applicable and in effect at the time the site permit was originally issued, and (2) any new requirements the Commission may wish to impose that are necessary for adequate protection to public health and safety or common defense and security, necessary for compliance with the Commission's regulations, and orders applicable and in effect at the time the site permit was originally issued, or result in a substantial increase in overall protection of the public health and safety or the common defense and security, and the direct and indirect costs of implementation of those requirements are justified in view of this increased protection.

The NRC staff will also complete an environmental review of the renewal application and will document its findings in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, and the Commission's regulations in 10 CFR part 51, “Environmental Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory Functions.”

II. Opportunity To Request a Hearing and Petition for Leave To Intervene

Within 60 days after the date of publication of this notice, any person (petitioner) whose interest may be affected by this action may file a request for a hearing and petition for leave to intervene (petition) with respect to the action. Petitions shall be filed in accordance with the Commission's “Agency Rules of Practice and Procedure” in 10 CFR part 2. Interested persons should consult 10 CFR 2.309. If a petition is filed, the presiding officer will rule on the petition and, if appropriate, a notice of a hearing will be issued.

Petitions must be filed no later than 60 days from the date of publication of this notice in accordance with the filing instructions in the “Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)” section of this document. Petitions and motions for leave to file new or amended contentions that are filed after the 60-day deadline will not be entertained absent a determination by the presiding officer that the filing demonstrates good cause by satisfying the three factors in 10 CFR 2.309(c)(1)(i) through (iii).

A State, local governmental body, Federally recognized Indian Tribe, or designated agency thereof, may submit a petition to the Commission to participate as a party under 10 CFR 2.309(h) no later than 60 days from the date of publication of this notice. Alternatively, a State, local governmental body, Federally recognized Indian Tribe, or designated agency thereof may participate as a non-party under 10 CFR 2.315(c).

For information about filing a petition and about participation by a person not a party under 10 CFR 2.315, see ADAMS Accession No. ML20340A053 ( www.nrc.gov/​docs/​ML2034/​ML20340A053) and the NRC's public website at www.nrc.gov/​about-nrc/​regulatory/​adjudicatory/​hearing.html#participate.

III. Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)

All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings, including documents filed by an interested State, local governmental body, Federally recognized Indian Tribe, or designated agency thereof that requests to participate under 10 CFR 2.315(c), must be filed in accordance with 10 CFR 2.302. The E-Filing process requires participants to submit and serve all adjudicatory documents over the internet, or in some cases, to mail copies on electronic storage media, unless an exemption permitting an alternative filing method, as further discussed, is granted. Detailed guidance on electronic submissions in adjudicatory proceedings is located in the “Electronic Information Exchange System Adjudicatory User's Guide” (ADAMS Accession No. ML23150A083) and on the NRC's public website at www.nrc.gov/​site-help/​e-submittals.html.

To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least 10 days prior to the filing deadline, the participant should contact the Office of the Secretary by email at Hearing.Docket@nrc.gov, or by telephone at 301-415-1677, to: (1) request a digital identification (ID) certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or representative) to digitally sign submissions and access the E-Filing system for any proceeding in which it is participating; and (2) advise the Secretary that the participant will be submitting a petition or other adjudicatory document (even in instances in which the participant, or its counsel or representative, already holds an NRC-issued digital ID certificate). Based upon this information, the Secretary will establish an electronic docket for the proceeding if the Secretary has not already established an electronic docket.

Information about applying for a digital ID certificate is available on the NRC's public website ( www.nrc.gov/​site-help/​e-submittals/​getting-started.html). After a digital ID certificate is obtained and a docket created, the participant must submit adjudicatory documents in Portable Document Format. Guidance on submissions is available on the NRC's public website ( www.nrc.gov/​site-help/​electronic-sub-ref-mat.html). A filing is considered complete at the time the document is submitted through the NRC's E-Filing system. To be timely, an electronic filing must be submitted to the E-Filing system no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on the due date. Upon receipt of a transmission, the E-Filing system time-stamps the document and sends the submitter an email confirming receipt of the document. The E-Filing system also distributes an email that provides access to the document to the NRC's Office of the General Counsel and any others who have advised the Office of the Secretary that they wish to participate in the proceeding, so that the filer need not serve the document on those participants separately. Therefore, applicants and other participants (or their counsel or representative) must apply for and receive a digital ID certificate before adjudicatory documents are filed to obtain access to the documents via the E-Filing system.

A person filing electronically using the NRC's adjudicatory E-Filing system may seek assistance by contacting the NRC's Electronic Filing Help Desk through the “Contact Us” link located on the NRC's public website ( www.nrc.gov/​site-help/​e-submittals.html), by email to MSHD.Resource@nrc.gov, or by a toll-free call at 1-866-672-7640. The NRC Electronic Filing Help Desk is available between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m., ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. ( printed page 57936)

Participants who believe that they have good cause for not submitting documents electronically must file an exemption request, in accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their initial paper filing stating why there is good cause for not filing electronically and requesting authorization to continue to submit documents in paper format. Such filings must be submitted in accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(b)-(d). Participants filing adjudicatory documents in this manner are responsible for serving their documents on all other participants. Participants granted an exemption under 10 CFR 2.302(g)(2) must still meet the electronic formatting requirement in 10 CFR 2.302(g)(1), unless the participant also seeks and is granted an exemption from 10 CFR 2.302(g)(1).

Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in the NRC's electronic hearing docket, which is publicly available on the NRC's public website ehd.nrc.gov, unless otherwise excluded pursuant to an order of the presiding officer. If you do not have an NRC-issued digital ID certificate as described above, click “cancel” when the link requests certificates and you will be automatically directed to the NRC's electronic hearing dockets where you will be able to access any publicly available documents in a particular hearing docket. Participants are requested not to include personal privacy information such as social security numbers, home addresses, or personal phone numbers in their filings unless an NRC regulation or other law requires submission of such information. With respect to copyrighted works, except for limited excerpts that serve the purpose of the adjudicatory filings and would constitute a Fair Use application, participants should not include copyrighted materials in their submission.

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

91 FR 57934