Marianne Walck

Laboratory Director, National Energy Technology Laboratory

Ambassador

Marianne Walck is the Laboratory Director at National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). As director, Walck leads delivery and execution of the Laboratory’s mission and national programs in carbon-based energy, including carbon capture, use and storage, methane mitigation, resource sustainability and critical minerals. Additionally, NETL provides program support to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Offices of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management; Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; Electricity; and Cybersecurity, Energy Security and Emergency Response. As director, Walck fosters strategic relationships with utility and academic institutions, state and local governments, and important carbon management stakeholders. Previously, she provided strategic leadership, direction, and integration for research, science, and technology at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in her role as Deputy Laboratory Director for Science and Technology and Chief Research Officer. She led INL’s Laboratory Directed Research and Development program, directed INL’s interactions with DOE’s Office of Science, and oversaw INL’s strategic interactions with universities. Walck’s prior experience also includes 33 years at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), including as Vice President of SNL’s California Laboratory and Energy and Climate Program. Her DOE national laboratory technical leadership experience includes technical program leadership; research leadership; and line, personnel, and site management.

Walck serves on several advisory boards for universities, national laboratories, and technical institutes. She holds memberships in the American Geophysical Union, the Seismological Society of America, the Association for Women Geoscientists, the American Nuclear Society, Women in Nuclear, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Walck was named one of the Top 100 Women in Energy by the National Diversity Council in 2021. She earned Doctoral and Master’s degrees in Geophysics from the California Institute of Technology and a Bachelor's degree in Geology/Physics from Hope College.