Resource estimates for common licensing and oversight activities in Storage and Transportation

The table below offers resource estimates for many of the common licensing and oversight activities for storage and transportation of nuclear material. This information is being offered to enhance stakeholder awareness of the costs associated with these activities. It will also aid licensees and applicants in the planning and budgeting of future applications. The licensing action information is based on a sampling of representative actions completed in the past few years. The inspection information is based on the resource estimates provided in inspection procedures. Actual costs may vary from these estimates depending on the specific circumstances. Some estimates are based on a small number of licensing actions, and future costs are expected to be lower. An example of this is in the renewal of independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) licenses. The NRC encourages licensees and applicants to engage early in the process when submitting new actions. Licensees are encouraged to work with their NRC project manager to discuss details of any specific application. The table will be updated on a biennial basis.

Resource Estimates for Storage and Transportation (March 2025)
Licensing Action	NRC Direct Staff Hours: Low Estimate of Level of Effort	NRC Direct Staff Hours: High Estimate of Level of Effort	NRC Direct Staff Hours: Average Estimate of Level of Effort	Contractor Costs in Dollars: Low Estimate of Level of Effort	Contractor Costs in Dollars: High Estimate of Level of Effort	Contractor Costs in Dollars: Average Estimate of Level of Effort
Licensing/Storage (Part 72)
Certificate of Compliance	30	2,880	710	$0	$0	$0
New Certificate of Compliance	2,310	2,310	2,310	$0	$0	$0
Amendments – simple	30	430	130	$0	$0	$0
Amendments – complex	450	2,880	1,410	$0	$0	$0
New Specific ISFSI	100	21,220	12,510	$0	$0	$0
Specific ISFSI – Amendment	30	1,330	390	$0	$0	$0
Renewal Certificate of Compliance	560	850	690	$0	$0	$0
Renewal ISFSI	260	1,340	760	$0	$0	$0
Licensing/Transportation (Part 71)
New Spent Fuel/Type B Waste Certificate of Compliance	1,110	2,120	1,520	$0	$0	$0
Spent Fuel/Type B Waste Amendment—simple	4	320	110	$0	$0	$0
Spent Fuel/Type B Waste Amendment—complex	260	1,680	830	$0	$0	$0
New Byproduct Material Certificate of Compliance	410	2,420	1,070	$0	$0	$0
Byproduct Material Amendment—simple	5	280	40	$0	$0	$0
Byproduct Material Amendment—complex	230	850	630	$0	$0	$0
New Unirradiated Fissile Package Certificate of Compliance	870	1,300	1,070	$0	$0	$0
Unirradiated Fissile Package Amendment—simple	10	150	50	$0	$0	$0
Unirradiated Fissile Package Amendment—complex	220	1,300	550	$0	$0	$0
Renewal	2	12	5	$0	$0	$0
HQ Inspection Hours
Part 71 and Part 72 Inspections
Vendor and Fabricator	50	310	145	$0	$0	$0

Notes:

• Estimates are comprised of actual data from 350 storage and transportation cases over 7 years (2018 - 2025).
• Some changes are a result of better infrastructure available at the time of this update, providing more refined data.
• Estimates do not include any potential efficiencies which might stem from programs such as M-LEAP and other advance act initiatives.

The estimated hours shown in this chart represent NRC professional staff hours associated with project management, licensing, and oversight activities. The distribution of time among professional staff members working on a project vary within each activity and from project to project. However, a single professional hourly rate is applied to all hours regardless of which professional staff contributed these hours. Indirect costs are included in the applied hourly rate as published in the current NRC Fee Rule. The average, high, and low estimates of hours shown in this chart are only intended to provide an approximate estimate of the total cost of NRC work on a billable activity based upon historical data.

In addition, contractors are used to assist the NRC to complete projects. Contractors can be used to supplement NRC staff or provide a particular expertise required for the project. Similar to the hourly estimates, the average, high, and low estimates for contractor costs shown here are only intended to provide an approximate estimate of total contractor billable costs on an activity based upon historical data.