AIKEN, S.C. – Brandon Williams, Under Secretary for Nuclear Security at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), made his first visit to the Savannah River Site (SRS) this week, touring key facilities February 23-24, and engaging in briefings with leaders from the NNSA Savannah River Field Office and Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS), the managing and operating contractor for the Site. Williams was joined by David Beck, NNSA Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs.
addresses the SRTE workforce during his visit to SRS.
A central focus of Administrator Williams’ first visit was his address to both leadership and the SRS workforce, emphasizing the critical nature of their mission and the administration’s focus on modernizing the nuclear weapons enterprise with agility and resilience to field a more diverse, flexible and effective deterrent.
Referring to the SRS workforce, Williams remarked, “You all are the heart and soul of delivering for our national security and for this deterrence mission. I appreciate that you’re committed, that you’ve stayed with it, and that hopefully you see the vision of how important both the tritium and plutonium missions are for our national defense.”
The visit began at the K Area Complex (KAC), with an overview of the facility’s history, ongoing operations and potential future objectives. The discussion included the facility’s current dilute and disposal mission in support of the South Carolina Settlement Agreement, the Surplus Plutonium Disposition (SPD) Project and the facility’s storage missions. A key takeaway was KAC’s strong history and continued commitment to addressing the nation’s security needs with a clear sense of urgency and readiness.
From there, Williams toured the Savannah River Plutonium Processing Facility (SRPPF) and the High-Fidelity Training and Operations Center (HFTOC), reviewing the significant progress being made in support of advancing NNSA’s plutonium pit production mission. The SRPPF project involves repurposing an existing structure and support facilities to establish an enduring pit production mission at SRS.
This visit highlighted the priority and urgency for the pit production mission. “We are proud to showcase the significant progress being made across the Site, especially at SRPPF and the HFTOC,” said SRNS President and CEO Jeff Griffin. “SRNS looks forward to continued collaboration with our NNSA partners to help strengthen America’s strategic deterrent and safeguard the nation’s stockpile.”
On day two, Williams visited the Savannah River Tritium Enterprise (SRTE), delivering remarks at an employee appreciation event celebrating key milestones, including successful completion of the Calendar Year 2025 (CY25) outage – a pivotal achievement in support of critical mission objectives.The Administrator also visited the H Canyon chemical separations facility and the HB Line, the only processing facility of its kind in the DOE Complex, to explore future mission areas.
“Deterrence, urgency and production are the missions I accepted as NNSA Administrator,” he said. “I don’t know of anywhere else in our enterprise that the production mission is better represented than here in Tritium.”
In addition, Williams toured the SRTE processing facilities, gaining deeper insight into the role these facilities play as the nation’s primary source of tritium, an essential component for maintaining the nuclear deterrent.
The visit concluded with a comprehensive briefing from SRNS and NNSA leadership on opportunities to accelerate NNSA’s pit production mission.
“SRS continues to be a cornerstone of the nation’s nuclear enterprise, delivering critical milestones and advancing missions with urgency,” said NNSA Savannah River Field Office Manager Michael Mikolanis. “Showcasing the Site’s mission-critical work during this visit highlighted the breadth and impact of our efforts in sustaining the U.S. nuclear deterrent.”
Established by Congress in 2000, NNSA is a semi-autonomous agency within the U.S. Department of Energy responsible for enhancing national security through the military application of nuclear science. NNSA maintains and enhances the safety, security, and effectiveness of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile; works to reduce the global danger from weapons of mass destruction; provides the U.S. Navy with safe and militarily effective nuclear propulsion; and responds to nuclear and radiological emergencies in the U.S. and abroad.
Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, a Fluor and HII partnership company, is responsible for the management and operations of the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site, located near Aiken, South Carolina.
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