2024 ANS Student Conference

Rita Baranwal

Westinghouse Electric Company

Dr. Rita Baranwal is Senior Vice President of AP300^TM Small Modular Reactors (SMR) at Westinghouse Electric Company, where she leads the team developing this game-changing, mid-sized nuclear technology. Dr. Baranwal brings more than 30 years of experience to this role, which she has held since May 2023. Most recently, she served as Westinghouse’s Chief Technology Officer – spearheading the technology strategy and leading its R&D investments. Earlier in her career, Dr. Baranwal worked for nearly a decade in senior leadership positions for Westinghouse’s Global Technology Development, Fuel Engineering and Product Engineering groups. In the years since, Dr. Baranwal served as Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy in the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in a U.S. President-appointed and Senate-confirmed role. She led efforts to promote R&D on existing and advanced nuclear technologies that sustain the U.S. fleet of nuclear reactors and enable the deployment of advanced nuclear energy systems. She’s also held senior leadership roles with the Idaho National Laboratory as Director of the Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) initiative and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) as Chief Nuclear Officer and Vice President of Nuclear. She also led and conducted R&D in advanced nuclear fuel materials for U.S. Naval Reactors at Bechtel Bettis, Inc. Dr. Baranwal holds advanced degrees in materials science and engineering, including a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan.