HI-STORE Consolidated Interim Storage Facility Part 72 licence (up to 8,680 MTU): NRC spent fuel storage licence review for Holtec International — issued, 62.3 months from docketing to decision. Sourced dates and schedule.
Background: NRC reactor licensing process, explained · The ADVANCE Act, explained: what changed and where the NRC stands
Current state
| Type | Spent fuel storage licence |
| Outcome | Issued |
| Applicant | Holtec International |
| Facility | HI-STORE CISF, Lea County, New Mexico |
| Docket | 72-1051 |
| Submitted | 2017-03-30 |
| Docketed (accepted for review) | 2018-02-28 |
| NRC planned schedule | — |
| NRC target date | — |
| Final safety evaluation | — |
| Decision | 2023-05-09 |
| Review time (docketed → decision) | 62.3 mo |
| Submitted → decision | 73.3 mo |
| NRC-reported review duration | — |
| NRC-reported resources vs estimate | — |
Review time is measured in average months from the date the NRC docketed the application to the decision. The NRC's own reported durations may measure to the final safety evaluation instead.
Notes
NRC target decision: 2020-07 (acceptance letter); revised repeatedly 2019–2023 (month only). The NRC CISF page gives "March 31, 2017" as the application date (FR says letter dated March 30, 2017). docketed = date of NRC acceptance letter (ML18059A251, document date Feb. 28, 2018); FR acceptance/docketing notice published Mar. 19, 2018. Schedule revised at least six times (letters July 1, 2019; Sept. 22, 2020; Mar. 25, 2021 safety review delay; July 2, 2021; Nov. 19, 2021; May 26, 2022; Jan. 26 and Mar. 22, 2023). Three RAI rounds. Contested hearing (ASLB Nov. 2018). Subsequent court litigation over the licence not covered. Fully pre-ADVANCE Act. Licence/permit: SNM-2516.
Timeline
- 2017-03-30 — Application received: “The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) received a license application from Holtec International (Holtec), by letter dated March 30, 2017, as supplemented on April 13, October 6, December 21, and 22, 2017; and February 22, 2018.” (source)
- 2018-02-28 — Accepted for review (docketed): “February 28, 2018 ... the NRC staff has established a schedule for the safety, security, and environmental review” (source)
- 2023-05-09 — Issued: “ML23055B114 - Letter to K. Manzione, Holtec International, Issuance of Materials License No. SNM-2516 for the HI-STORE Consolidated Interim Storage Facility ISFSI (5/9/2023)” (source)
The timeline is append-only: corrections are added as new entries. See the NNN Data License Terms for reuse of the event history.
NNN coverage
About Holtec International
- Holtec files Palisades SMR safety report with NRC 2026-10-03
- Analysts size Africa's SMR market at $105B, 15 GW by 2035 2026-09-07
- Palisades fuel loading: Holtec restart timeline and what comes next 2026-09-01
- The nuclear decommissioning market in 2026: size, players, pipeline 2026-07-14
- NRC opens environmental review of Holtec's Palisades new-build 2026-06-17
- The 7 nuclear stories that mattered this week 2026-10-03
Related reviews
See all 75 reviews in the NRC Licensing Review Tracker →
Sources
- https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML2307/ML23075A179.html
- https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/05/12/2023-10162/holtec-international-hi-store-consolidated-interim-storage-facility
- https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/07/16/2018-15079/holtec-internationals-hi-store-consolidated-interim-storage-facility-for-interim-storage-of-spent
- https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1805/ML18059A251.pdf
- https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/news-releases/2023/nrc-issues-license-holtec-international-consolidated-spent-nuclear-fuel-interim-storage-facility-new
- https://www.nrc.gov/facilities-safety/storage-of-spent-nuclear-fuel/consolidated-interim-storage-facility-cisf/holtec-international-hi-store-cisf