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NRC NEWS
U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION |
| Office of Public Affairs |
Telephone: 301/415-8200 |
| Washington, DC 20555-001 |
E-mail: opa@nrc.gov |
No. 96-56 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Tuesday, April 9, 1996)
NRC CONSIDERING REVISING DECOMMISSIONING FUNDING RULE
TO REFLECT UTILITY DEREGULATION; PUBLIC COMMENTS ASKED
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is considering revising
NRC's regulations on decommissioning funding to better reflect
conditions brought about by restructuring and deregulation of the
electric power industry.
Before proceeding with publication of a proposed rule,
however, the Commission is seeking public comments on several
issues involved. The deadline for submission of comments is June
24.
Present NRC regulations, adopted in 1988, permit a nuclear
electric utility to set aside decommissioning funds annually over
the estimated life of a plant. But those same regulations give
electric utilities more flexibility than non-utility licensees in
setting up a financial assurance mechanism.
The reason is that utilities have long operated in a highly
structured, regulated and non-competitive environment with
assured ratepayer revenues to meet prudent costs. However, with
the growing trend toward deregulation of the electric power
industry, questions have arisen as to whether a nuclear power
licensee could lose a regulated rate base as a source of funds to
cover the unfunded balance of decommissioning expenses.
Accordingly, the Commission is considering changing its
decommissioning funding regulations to:
. Require that electric utility reactor licensees assure
NRC that they can finance the full estimated cost of
decommissioning if they are no longer subject to rate
regulation by state agencies or by the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission and do not have a guaranteed
source of income.
. Require utility licensees to report periodically on the
status of their decommissioning funds. The present
rule has no such requirement because state and Federal
rate-regulating bodies actively monitor these funds. A
deregulated nuclear utility would have no such
monitoring.
Additionally, the NRC is considering permitting licensees to
take credit for a positive, real rate of return on
decommissioning trust funds during a period of safe storage (a
decommissioning phase when the plant is maintained in a condition
that allows the radioactivity on site to decay). Under the
present rule, licensees cannot take credit for earnings on such
funds during safe storage because it is assumed that inflation
and taxes would erode any investment return.
The NRC is also requesting comments on whether the Federal
government licensees of operating power reactors should be
allowed to continue to use statements of intent to meet
decommissioning financial assurance requirements for their power
reactors.
Full details are available in the NRC's Advanced Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking on this matter, published in the April 8
edition of the Federal Register. The notice also may be accessed
on the NRC Electronic Bulletin Board on Fedworld, or may be
obtained from the NRC Office of Public Affairs.
Comments should be mailed to: The Secretary of the
Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
20555, Attention: Docketing and Service Branch. They may be
delivered to 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland, between
7:45 a. m. and 4:15 p. m. on Federal workdays. Comments also may
be submitted electronically through the NRC Electronic Bulletin
Board on FedWorld.
NRC's preliminary views expressed in the proposed rulemaking
notice may change in light of comments received. Any proposed
rule developed also will be published for public comment before
adoption in final form.
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