The US and Romania have launched the first NuScale Energy Exploration (E2) Centre outside the US as Bucharest forges ahead with plans to deploy the first small modular reactor in Europe.

The US state department said in a statement that the E2 Centre, at University Politehnica of Bucharest, is a simulator of the NuScale Power’s Voygr small modular reactor power plant control room.

It will be used to educate and train the next generation of nuclear engineers to operate advanced civil nuclear reactor technologies while establishing Romania as a regional educational and training hub for the next stage of civil nuclear deployments across Romania and Europe.

It will provide an “innovative learning environment” that supports workforce development and offers users a hands-on opportunity to apply nuclear science and engineering principles through simulated, real-world nuclear power plant operation scenarios, the department said.