Manufacturing 2023: KATHERINE WILLIAMS

On July 1, Williams succeeded CEO Gary Mignogna, who became Framatome’s board chairman upon his retirement after 45 years leading the nuclear reactor and fuel manufacturer.

Williams has worked for the U.S. subsidiary of French nuclear reactor manufacturer Framatome (formerly Areva NP) for more than 20 years and manages all of the parent company’s financial activities in North America. With 16,000 employees worldwide and 1,430 in Virginia, Framatome designs and provides equipment, services and fuel for nuclear power plants.

In May, Framatome announced it was committing $400,000 to relaunching its Nuclear Technology Academy at Central Virginia Community College, starting in fall 2023 with 30 participants. In 2021, Framatome started an independent subsidiary, Framatome
U.S. Government Solutions, which focuses on nuclear projects for federal agencies.

Before joining Framatome, Williams worked in financial management at DuPont, Westinghouse Electric and Duke Energy. Although Framatome has long had a major presence in Lynchburg, its North American headquarters moved to Lynchburg from Charlotte, North Carolina, in 2018. Williams serves on the board for the National D-Day Memorial Foundation, as well as several corporate boards associated with Framatome.