Feb 18, 2011 (FIND, Inc. via COMTEX) --
I
USEC, Inc. (USEC) is the holder of material licenses numbers SNM-7003 and SNM-2011 for the American Centrifuge Lead Cascade Facility (Lead Cascade) and American Centrifuge Plant (ACP), respectively, which authorize the licensee to: (1) Possess and use source and special nuclear material at the Lead Cascade at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant site in Piketon, Ohio, in accordance with material license number SNM-7003; and, (2) construct and operate a gas centrifuge uranium enrichment facility (the ACP) at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant site in Piketon, Ohio, in accordance with material license number SNM-2011.
II
By letter dated September 10, 2010, USEC requested that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) consent to transfer control of material license numbers SNM-7003 and SNM-2011 from USEC to a subsidiary limited liability company, American Centrifuge Operating (ACO), LLC. In addition, USEC requested NRC approval of changes to the Lead Cascade and the ACP material licenses. With NRC's approval of the request to transfer licenses, USEC will then make conforming changes to the license applications to reflect ACO as the Licensee. USEC's request included conforming changes to Chapter 2 of the combined Lead Cascade and ACP security program.
Approval of the direct transfer of the licenses and of the conforming license amendments was requested pursuant to 10 CFR 70.36. A notice of consideration of approval was published in the Federal Register on November 17, 2010 (75 FR 70300), including a notice of opportunity to request a hearing, or to submit written comments. No requests for a hearing were submitted in response to this notice. However, the Ohio Sierra Club submitted a written request, dated December 5, 2010 (ADAMS Accession No. ML103370366), for a public meeting to discuss this request to transfer licenses. In response, the NRC held a public meeting on January 4, 2011, in Piketon, Ohio, to discuss NRC's process for reviewing USEC's request to transfer licenses with members of the Sierra Club and other members of the public. During the meeting, the Southern Ohio Neighbors Group (SONG) submitted written comments regarding the transfer of licenses to the NRC. SONG's comments were received after the December 17, 2010, due date for submittal of comments provided in the November 17, 2010, Federal Register Notice. The NRC considered the comments to the maximum extent practicable within the enclosed Safety Evaluation Report.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 30.34(b), 40.46, and 70.36, no license granted under those parts, and no right thereunder to use byproduct, source, or special nuclear material, shall be transferred, assigned, or in any manner disposed of, directly or indirectly, through transfer of control of any license, to any person, unless the Commission shall, after securing full information, find that the transfer is in accordance with the provisions of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (the Act), as amended, and shall give its consent in writing.
The Commission will approve an application for the direct or indirect transfer of a license if the Commission determines that the proposed restructuring and reorganization will not affect the qualifications of the Licensee to hold the license, and that the transfer is otherwise consistent with applicable provisions of law, regulations, and orders issued by the Commission pursuant thereto. After review of the information in USEC's request and other information before the Commission, and relying on the representations and agreements contained in the request, the NRC staff has determined that the proposed corporate restructuring and direct transfer of the licenses are acceptable and consistent with applicable provisions of law, regulations, and orders issued by the Commission. The NRC staff has further determined that the application for the proposed license amendments complies with the standards and requirements of the Act, as amended, and the Commission's rules and regulations set forth in Title 10 Chapter I. The requested direct transfer of the licenses source: www.tradingmarkets.com
