Notice2024-22046
Request for Information To Release a Solicitation for Certification and Allocation of Credits Under the Civil Nuclear Credit Program
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 27, 2024
Issuing agencies
Energy Department
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) is issuing this RFI to request information from interested parties of DOE's intent to release a solicitation for applications, and to seek advance notice of an intent to submit applications in the form of a Letter of Interest (LOI), from nuclear reactor owners or operators for certification and allocation of credits under the Civil Nuclear Credit (CNC) Program to support nuclear reactors at risk of ceasing operations due to economic factors. In the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Congress directed the Secretary of Energy (Secretary) to establish a CNC Program to evaluate and certify nuclear reactors that are projected to cease operations due to economic factors and to allocate credits to selected certified nuclear reactors via a sealed bid process.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 188 (Friday, September 27, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 188 (Friday, September 27, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79281-79283]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-22046]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Request for Information To Release a Solicitation for
Certification and Allocation of Credits Under the Civil Nuclear Credit
Program
AGENCY: Grid Deployment Office, Department of Energy.
ACTION: Request for information (RFI).
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) is
issuing this RFI to request information from interested parties of
DOE's intent to release a solicitation for applications, and to seek
advance notice of an intent to submit applications in the form of a
Letter of Interest (LOI), from nuclear reactor owners or operators for
certification and allocation of credits
[[Page 79282]]
under the Civil Nuclear Credit (CNC) Program to support nuclear
reactors at risk of ceasing operations due to economic factors. In the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Congress directed the Secretary
of Energy (Secretary) to establish a CNC Program to evaluate and
certify nuclear reactors that are projected to cease operations due to
economic factors and to allocate credits to selected certified nuclear
reactors via a sealed bid process.
DATES: Submission of LOIs is requested on or before October 28, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties may submit an LOI as an attachment by
email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#9eddd0ddc1ceecf1f9ecfff3c1d3fff7f2fcf1e6def6efb0faf1fbb0f9f1e8"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3f7c717c606f4d50584d5e5260725e56535d50477f574e115b505a11585049">[email protected]</span></a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or
questions about the RFI may be sent to Theodore Taylor, Civil Nuclear
Credit Program Manager, at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#25666b667a75574a425744487a68444c49474a5d654d540b414a400b424a53"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="efaca1acb0bf9d80889d8e82b0a28e86838d8097af879ec18b808ac1888099">[email protected]</span></a> or at (202)
586-4316.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background and Program Description
As energy markets and economic circumstances continue to shift, the
United States has lost approximately 10,200 megawatts of nuclear energy
capacity with the premature closures of 13 commercial reactors.\1\
These closures have led to an increase in carbon emissions, poorer air
quality, and the loss of thousands of high-paying jobs. Further
closures threaten to exacerbate these issues. In November 2021,
Congress appropriated funds under the Infrastructure Investment and
Jobs Act (IIJA) (Pub. L. 117-58), codified at 42 U.S.C. 18753, to
allocate credits to certified nuclear reactors to prevent closure due
to economic factors. In addition to the CNC Program, Congress also
appropriated funds in August 2022 under Section 13105 of the Inflation
Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) (Pub. L. 117-169), codified at 26 U.S.C.
45U for the zero-emission nuclear power production tax credit that
provides up to an inflation-adjusted $15 per megawatt-hour for
electricity produced. The CNC Program also advances the President's
Justice40 Initiative,\2\ which sets a goal that 40 percent of the
overall benefits of certain federal climate, clean energy, affordable
and sustainable housing, and other investments flow to disadvantaged
communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened
by pollution.\3\ In the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, Congress
repurposed an aggregate amount of up to $3.72 billion in the CNC
Program's unobligated balances appropriated under the IIJA to carry out
nuclear programs supporting small modular reactors and a uranium
strategy pursuant to the Nuclear Fuel Security Act of 2023.\4\
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\1\ Congressional Research Serv., R46820, U.S. Nuclear Plant
Shutdowns, State Interventions, and Policy Concerns, (Updated 2/7/
22, available at <a href="https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R46820">https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R46820</a>. Note that Palisades Nuclear Power Plant has not yet closed
but is not producing power.
\2\ <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/environmentaljustice/justice40">https://www.whitehouse.gov/environmentaljustice/justice40</a>.
\3\ White House, Justice40 Covered Programs List (Nov. 2023),
available at <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Justice40-Initiative-Covered-Programs-List_v2.0_11.23_FINAL.pdf">https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Justice40-Initiative-Covered-Programs-List_v2.0_11.23_FINAL.pdf</a>.
\4\ See Section 3131 of the National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2024, Public Law 118-31 (Dec. 22, 2023).
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CNC Award Cycles 1 and 2 were released in 2022 and 2023,
respectively. Under the CNC Program, DOE certifies operating nuclear
reactors projected to cease operations due to economic factors and
whose closure would result in a projected increase in air pollutants,
if the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has reasonable assurance the
reactor will continue to operate safely. Certification of eligibility
to apply for credits requires that the nuclear reactor meet certain
economic and other criteria. The CNC Program identifies specific
eligibility criteria and provides discretion for the Secretary to
define additional eligibility criteria for certification of the
qualifying nuclear reactor. Credits will be awarded over a four-year
period beginning on the date of the selection. Nuclear reactor owners
or operators may apply for recertification after that time and
additional credits may be allocated through September 30, 2031, subject
to the availability of funds.
More detailed information about the CNC Program can be found at
<a href="https://www.energy.gov/gdo/civil-nuclear-credit-program">https://www.energy.gov/gdo/civil-nuclear-credit-program</a>.
Purpose
Subject to availability of funds, DOE is planning up to $980
million for Award Cycle 3. Prior to releasing the Guidance for Award
Cycle 3, DOE is requesting that nuclear reactor owners or operators
interested in applying for certification and allocation of credits
under the CNC Program provide advance notice of intent to apply in the
form of a Letter of Interest (LOI) to be submitted no later than 30
days after this RFI notice. Submissions of LOIs that comply with
relevant requirements, as outlined in the Business Proprietary
Information section will be kept strictly confidential.
LOI responses shall include:
<bullet> Name(s), phone number(s), and email address(es) for the
principal point(s) of contact
<bullet> Institution or organization affiliation and postal address
<bullet> Organization's non-binding expression of interest in applying
to the CNC Program Award Cycle 3
<bullet> Names of each nuclear reactor for which an owner/operator is
intending to apply for certification and allocation of credits under
the CNC Program
The responses received from nuclear reactors owners or operators
will assist DOE in assessing the CNC Program's timing and resources for
Award Cycle 3. Any information obtained as a result of this RFI is
intended to be used by DOE on a non-attribution basis for planning and
strategy development; this RFI does not constitute a formal
solicitation for applications. No application submittals are required
at this time. Responses to this RFI will be treated as information
only. Respondents are advised that DOE is under no obligation to
acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to
respondents with respect to any information submitted under this RFI.
Responses to this RFI do not bind DOE to any further actions related to
this topic.
An LOI containing the required information as stated in this
section will be marked confidential as described in the Business
Proprietary Information section.
Business Proprietary Information
Responses containing confidential, proprietary, or privileged
information must be conspicuously marked as described in this section.
Failure to comply with these marking requirements may result in the
disclosure of the unmarked information under the Freedom of Information
Act or otherwise. The U.S. Federal Government is not liable for the
disclosure or use of unmarked information and may use or disclose such
information for any purpose.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any person submitting information
believed to be business proprietary and exempt by law from public
disclosure should submit via email two well-marked copies: One copy of
the document marked ``Business Proprietary'' including all the
information believed to be proprietary, and one copy of the document
marked ``non-Proprietary'' deleting all information believed to be
business proprietary. DOE will make its own determination about the
business proprietary status of the information and treat it according
to its
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determination. Factors of interest to DOE when evaluating requests to
treat submitted information as business proprietary include: (1) a
description of the items; (2) whether and why such items are
customarily treated as business proprietary within the industry; (3)
whether the information is generally known by or available from other
sources; (4) whether the information has previously been made available
to others without obligation concerning its business proprietary
nature; (5) an explanation of the competitive injury to the submitting
person which would result from public disclosure; (6) when such
information might lose its business proprietary character due to the
passage of time; and (7) why disclosure of the information would be
contrary to the public interest.
Signing Authority
This document of the Department of Energy was signed on September
20, 2024, by Maria D. Robinson, Director, Grid Deployment Office,
pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. That
document with the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For
administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of
the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal
Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the
document in electronic format for publication, as an official document
of the Department of Energy. This administrative process in no way
alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the
Federal Register.
Signed in Washington, DC, on September 23, 2024.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2024-22046 Filed 9-26-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
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