NRC Grants Holtec Palisades One-Time Exemption to File Subsequent License Renewal

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has given Holtec Palisades, LLC a one-time exemption from 10 CFR 2.109(b) that permits Holtec to submit a subsequent license renewal application for Palisades Nuclear Plant in Covert Township, Michigan, less than five years before the reactor’s renewed operating license expires, provided the application is filed no later than March 24, 2028. If the NRC staff finds the application sufficient for docketing, the license will be in timely renewal while the NRC completes its review.

The exemption was issued by the NRC on February 10, 2026 and published in the Federal Register on February 18, 2026 under Docket No. 50-255; NRC-2026-0497. Holtec’s original request to the NRC was submitted by letter dated June 26, 2025 with ADAMS accession ML25177A070. NRC accession numbers referenced in the notice include ML25157A127; ML25157A107; ML25150A281; ML25156A045; ML25163A182; and ML25167A245.

The NRC grounded the action in its exemption authorities, citing 10 CFR 54.15 and 10 CFR 50.12, and concluded that "the requested exemption is authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to the public health and safety, and is consistent with the common defense and security." The Federal Register text also states that special circumstances under 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2) are present and that the grant is a one-time exemption from the five-year advance-filing requirement.

Practically, the exemption preserves what the NRC and Holtec call "timely renewal protection" if Holtec files by the March 24, 2028 deadline and the staff accepts the submission for docketing. The Govinfo summary emphasizes that the decision "does not constitute approval of the subsequent license renewal application" but provides that, if submitted and docketed by the deadline, the licensee will receive timely renewal protection until the NRC makes a final determination.

The exemption arrives as Holtec advances multiple Palisades milestones. Neutronbytes reports the NRC changed Palisades from "decommissioning" to "operational" status in August, the Department of Energy issued a sixth disbursement tied to a $1.5 billion loan in September, and the plant received 68 fuel assemblies in October that are being stored until the NRC authorizes loading. Neutronbytes also says Holtec submitted the first major licensing application for Palisades SMR-300 Units Pioneer 1 and 2 and has asked the NRC to review CPA Part 1 by December 31, 2026; the NRC has assigned applicant docket numbers for those units.

Legal friction remains. Neutronbytes notes that groups filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan challenging NRC approval of Holtec’s restart exemption, and a wire service report referenced a dismissal tied to a separate action withdrawn by Beyond Nuclear. Beyond Nuclear further reports that Holtec Decommissioning International sought exemptions from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) and 10 CFR 50.75(h)(1)(iv) to permit withdrawals from the Palisades Decommissioning Trust Fund without prior NRC notification, an exemption the source says would apply only after the license transfer "is now complete."

Holtec now faces a fixed regulatory timetable: submit the subsequent license renewal application by March 24, 2028 and obtain NRC staff acceptance for docketing to preserve timely renewal status; the exemption secures that procedural protection but does not itself extend or approve the Palisades operating license.