The nuclear fusion startup Helion, which announced recently that it has raised $500 million, says it has developed new technologies that may make nuclear fusion viable — practically, economically and environmentally.
If I am brutally honest, there is only one motto I would give to the movement to stem climate change after the Glasgow summit: “Everyone wants to go to heaven but nobody wants to die.”
Excitement about fusion energy is growing. The international ITER project in France, which counts China, India, Europe, Japan, Russia, South Korea, and the United States as its partners, is starting to assemble the world’s most powerful fusion experiment.
Recent technological breakthroughs and a surge in private funding have reignited interest in nuclear fusion, the atomic reaction that powers the sun and other stars.
The march towards fusion energy gain, required for commercial fusion energy, is not always visible. Progress occurs in fits and starts through experiments in national laboratories, universities, and more recently at private companies.
For decades, the promise of harnessing the power of fusion on a commercial scale to create vast amounts of carbon-free energy has hovered just out of reach for scientists. At last that tantalizing dream appears closer to reality and the cash is starting to flow.
A Washington-based nuclear fusion startup has added another $500 million to its purse as it works toward demonstrating net electricity generation from fusion in 2024.
Nuclear fusion is the ephemeral holy grail of climate technology. It would provide nearly limitless amounts of clean energy without the byproduct of long-lasting radioactive waste to be managed.
Despite its massive investment in the ITER fusion project in France, the EU is home to only a tiny fraction of fusion start-ups. The technology may be far from proven, but Europe is already falling behind in preparing for commercial deployment
Most private fusion companies expect fusion power to be supplying electricity to the grid in the 2030s. That is according to the first-ever report on the state of the fusion industry, which has been published today by the Fusion Industry Association (FIA) and the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA).