Four Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers traveled to Warsaw, Poland, during the first week of April to support the opening of Poland’s first Clean Energy Training Center, or CETC, a regional hub dedicated to providing workforce development and training to expand new nuclear capacity in Central Europe.  

The center is a joint effort between the U.S. Department of Energy and the Polish Ministry of Climate and the Environment, with ORNL lending technical and training expertise. This new training capacity seeks to directly support Poland’s recent commitment to deploying advanced nuclear reactors in the region. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the National Nuclear Security Administration also supported the launch event. 

ORNL’s delegation included Andrew Worrall, DeLeah Lockridge, Gale Hauck and Kate Borowiec, representing ORNL’s Nuclear Energy and Fuel Cycle Division.

“This is such an exciting initiative; to be a part of it was a privilege. Having worked in the nuclear field for over 30 years, I have been extremely fortunate to have benefited from a lot of training and applied experience,” Worrall, ORNL’s director of nuclear programs, said. “To be able to share those insights and experience with a new nuclear country and to be a part of this DOE-led center underlines the role of a national lab such as ORNL and the benefit of the collaboration the U.S. has with Poland.” 

The visit culminated months of virtual meetings between ORNL, the Polish nuclear industry, academics and other stakeholders, during which they discussed advanced nuclear deployment, including quality assurance and compliance, fuel cycle and waste management, and supply chain development. The launch marked a transition to in-person collaboration.