UK powers up fusion development with £410 million investment

Government aims to fire up clean energy as part of its plan to kickstart economic growth

Fusion reactors require enormous heat to replicate the process that occurs in the Sun. Photo: Tokamak Energy

Britain's fusion energy development, which could lead to an almost limitless supply of clean energy, is to receive a £410 million investment boost from the UK government.

The investment will be used to accelerate the development of the UK's fusion sector over the next two years, and is aimed at attracting and training more scientists, engineers, welders and programme managers into the industry. Fusion supports at least 2,400 jobs already in the UK, with thousands more to follow as the technology advances.

Several companies have been shortlisted by UK Industrial Fusion Solutions (UKIFS) to construct a world-leading fusion power plant in Nottinghamshire, which was once a major centre of Britain's coal industry. Indeed, the prototype plant is set to be built at the former site of a coal power plant, with the aim of revitalising the area with new, skilled jobs.

“Britain is at the forefront of this global race to deliver fusion, and today’s record level of funding will provide investment and economic growth through our Plan for Change, delivering on net zero and creating the clean energy of the future,” Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said.

Commonwealth Fusion workers assemble a frame that will hold a demonstration reactor. Bloomberg

Global race

Fusion involves the collision of lighter atoms to create a heavier one, a process that happens in the Sun when atoms of hydrogen smash into each other to create atoms of helium, in the process releasing huge amounts of energy. It is distinct from fission, the process used in nuclear power plants where heavier atoms are split to release energy.

“We are taking a step forward in the global race to commercialise fusion, growing our economy, attracting investment and harnessing the power of the Sun to create clean limitless secure energy,” Climate Minister Kerry McCarthy said. “This is what our clean energy transition is about – creating jobs in our local communities and building the skills that we need on the path to net zero.”

The path towards building a commercially viable fusion plant, known as Step (Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production), is led by UK Industrial Fusion Solutions (UKIFS), a wholly owned subsidiary of the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) Group. From the shortlisted companies, one engineering and one construction firm will eventually be awarded contracts worth hundreds of millions of pounds to bring a fusion plant online and make the power a commercial reality.

Tokamak Energy and Westinghouse are among the engineering companies, and Balfour Beatty and Vinci Construction are in the running for the construction contract. The companies and several others will undertake detailed discussions with UKIFS before the final contracts are awarded.

“It is great to see the level of investment and support from the UK government announced this morning,” Warrick Matthews, chief executive of Tokamak Energy, told The National. “It also confirmed Tokamak Energy and our Celestial partners progressing to the next stage of procurement for Step. The only way to deploy fusion technologies and devices at scale is by developing strong partnerships, and we look forward to the opportunities ahead for delivering a new form of clean, secure and limitless energy.”

Warrick Matthews, chief executive of Tokamak Energy, welcomed the government's support. Matthew Davies / The National

Meanwhile, the UKAEA's chief executive Prof Ian Chapman said: “I am delighted by the strong support from government to delivering fusion as a safe, sustainable energy of the future, and to anchor this exciting new industry in the UK.”

As part of its plan to advance the development of artificial intelligence (AI) in the UK, this week the government also proposed plans for the country's first AI Growth Zone to be at the UKAEA’s fusion energy campus at Culham in Oxfordshire. The idea is that advancements in AI will boost the computing power needed for fusion energy research, as well benefiting Britain's wider national AI infrastructure.