Sargent & Lundy’s implementation of the SPRING initiative, on behalf of the U.S. Department of State, is making strides as utilities and government representatives across Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia evaluate deployment of U.S. small modular reactor technology.
The SMR Pan-Regional Interest Nuclear Group, known as SPRING, launched late last year as part of the State Department’s Foundational Infrastructure for Responsible Use of SMR Technology (FIRST) program to foster international cooperation and strengthen global energy security through U.S. nuclear expertise and technology. Sargent & Lundy’s team of nuclear professionals who support SPRING and FIRST are seeing early signs of success in building collaborative international partnerships across 14 countries to establish common design approaches and uniformity in regulatory standards.
“The goal of the SPRING initiative is to make the deployment of U.S. SMR technology smooth and efficient by coordinating cooperative exchanges and workshops while removing potential roadblocks,” said Sargent & Lundy Project Director Josh Best.
Sargent & Lundy recently helped deliver a three-day training session in Budapest, Hungary, for participating SPRING countries on SMR licensing regulatory review policies. They also held a workshop to outline preconstruction and construction considerations, including the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approach and how it compares with national and local approval processes. Team members later this month will help lead a workshop in Tallinn, Estonia, on stakeholder engagement best practices.
Earlier this year, Best and his team helped organize financial workshops in Dubrovnik, Croatia, focused on costs, solutions, and risk mitigation, which included Nicole McGraw, the U.S. ambassador to Croatia. Her remarks followed major announcements that the U.S. would increase cooperation with Croatia’s civil nuclear program and support an SMR feasibility study under FIRST.
SPRING participants include Armenia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine. The initiative is designed to uphold the highest nuclear safety, security, and nonproliferation standards by applying technology-specific regulatory and project management expertise alongside U.S. SMR vendors. Sargent & Lundy is a commercial nuclear industry pioneer and is at the forefront of SMR and advanced reactor technology, providing engineering and design support for SMR deployment in the U.S. and internationally.