The company ended 2025 by achieving its highest plasma current, highest stored energy, and highest fusion triple product – all key measures on the path to delivering clean, limitless fusion energy.

The compact spherical tokamak at the company’s Oxfordshire HQ is now preparing for a major upgrade for a new campaign of ground-breaking experiments in partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ).

Otto Asunta, Tokamak Energy Experiments Chief for ST40, said: “These superb results are a great way to finish the year and demonstrate how the ST40 team continues to push the limits, improving the already impressive performance of our compact high-field device.

“Breaking into the mega-amp range with our plasma current is a major milestone as we continue to build our knowledge of what will be needed for delivering fusion energy to future grids. We now look forward to working with the U.S. and UK governments on a new wave of experiments to deliver more cutting-edge science with our industry-leading device that has always punched above its weight.”

ST40 set a new record by reaching 1 MA (1,000,000 amperes) of plasma current, surpassing its previous best of 0.85 MA, while stored energy was nearly doubled compared to previous campaigns. This demonstrates that a plasma volume of just one cubic metre can hold immense power – an important insight on the path to energy-producing devices.

Plasma current – the electric current flowing through the plasma inside a tokamak – is crucial for confinement. It generates a poloidal magnetic field that, together with the magnetic fields from coils, keeps the plasma confined and away from material surfaces inside a tokamak. In future devices, a high plasma current is required to also trap the fusion-born alpha particles.
The fusion triple product, a measure combining plasma temperature, density, and energy confinement, is a key indicator of plasma performance.

In the company’s record-breaking 100 million degrees Celsius campaign of 2022, ST40 achieved a triple product of approximately 6 ± 2 × 10¹⁸ m⁻³·keV·s, the highest ever achieved in a privately-owned tokamak. Following an extensive series of experiments at plasma currents >800 kA and toroidal field 2.1 T, the team improved its previous best by a third to ~8 ± 2 × 10¹⁸ m⁻³·keV·s, demonstrating significant progress in plasma performance by operating in H-mode (high-confinement mode).

The latest campaign also saw the implementation of a new software called RT-GSFit that can reconstruct the plasma shape during a pulse at a millisecond time resolution (a thousand times per second). Integrating RT-GSFit into the ST40 Plasma Control System allowed the team to control plasma shape in real-time.

ST40 has now paused operations for the $52 million upgrade programme, known as LEAPS (Lithium Evaporations to Advance PFCs in ST40), in partnership with DOE and DESNZ. The programme will apply lithium coatings to all plasma-facing components (PFCs) using a lithium evaporation technique, building on pioneering work by Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory and others that has shown lithium PFCs can significantly improve plasma performance.

The ultimate goal is to enable fusion conditions with good confinement that is compatible with sustainment for long durations in a future fusion pilot plant.

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Demo4 also demonstrates the transformative potential of high temperature superconducting (HTS) technology across a range of spin-out applications, from power distribution for data centres, electric motors for zero emission flight, and fast, efficient magnetic levitation transport systems.

Creating fusion energy requires extremely strong magnetic fields to confine and control hydrogen fuel, which is heated to a plasma several times hotter than the centre of the sun inside a vessel called a tokamak.

Tokamak Energy’s Demo4 – a complete set of HTS magnets built in a tokamak configuration – produced the milestone results at the company’s headquarters outside Oxford, achieving field strengths of 11.8 Tesla at -243 degrees Celsius in recent tests.

The world-first system had an incredible seven million ampere turns of electrical current running through its centre column, demonstrating huge potential for power distribution as HTS can deliver around 200 times the current density of copper.

Warrick Matthews, Tokamak Energy CEO, said: “These results are a major victory for the race to deliver fusion and HTS as a disruptive new commercial technology. Demo4 represents over a decade of HTS innovation at Tokamak Energy. Born from our fusion mission, it validates one of the technical solutions for getting clean, limitless, safe and secure fusion energy on the grid.

“Demo4 is also best in class at showcasing and demonstrating the transformative potential for superconductors, including power distribution for high-demand environments like data centres and applications across science, power systems, propulsion, and beyond.”

Strong magnetic fields are generated by passing large electrical currents through arrays of electromagnetic coils assembled in a cage-like formation. The magnets are wound with precision from HTS tapes using multi-layered metal conductors with a crucial internal coating of ‘rare earth barium copper oxide’ (REBCO) superconducting material.

While recognising the achievement of demonstrating a single high-field HTS magnet, Tokamak Energy has focused on the next essential step: validating a complete HTS magnet system. In a fusion power plant, each REBCO superconducting tape must operate within the complex, combined magnetic environment created by neighbouring coils – conditions that significantly influence its effective critical current and structural performance.

These system-level interactions cannot be captured through individual magnet tests. Demo4 is therefore a world-first high field platform to generate and study fusion-relevant forces across a system coil set (14 toroidal field magnets and two poloidal field magnets), providing uniquely valuable engineering insight and data to inform power plant designs of the future.

Graham Dunbar, Demo4 chief engineer at Tokamak Energy, said: “Demo4 is delivering exactly what it was built for. Every test provides us with invaluable data and deepens our understanding. This isn’t just about achieving a number; it’s about gaining the confidence and build expertise to scale our technology for future energy-producing fusion systems.”

Demo4’s results confirm Tokamak Energy’s HTS magnets can generate the high fields essential for a fusion power plant and prove their capacity to support higher current densities with plug-in cooling capability. This means they can be made smaller and lighter than traditional low-temperature superconductors and operate at a fraction of the cooling cost. Further testing to reach higher magnetic fields continues, with next results due in early 2026.

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Launched in 2023, the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA)’s Principles of Undersea Magnetohydrodynamic Pumps (PUMP) programme was initiated with a view to creating novel electrode materials suitable for a magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) drive.

The contract with General Atomics will see Tokamak Energy provide the simulation, design and fabrication of the HTS magnets.

General Atomics will provide magnet system integration with auxiliary systems and integration with prime contractor HRL Laboratories, who are developing the electrode technology needed to overcome existing performance limitations. These combined efforts bring together capabilities that address challenges which have previously made the technology unviable due to limitations in magnets and electrodes.

HTS is the ideal technology to be deployed for MHD as propulsion in water requires high magnetic fields in a compact package, and HTS technology is capable of enabling a more powerful, silent and efficient MHD drive.

Tokamak Energy is delivering this technology by leveraging its proprietary suite of modelling and simulation tools validated through extensive magnet testing, patented designs that enable robust magnets and versatile manufacturing technologies born from its mission to deliver clean and limitless fusion energy.

Dr Liam Brennan, Director of TE Magnetics, Tokamak Energy’s specialist business division, said: “This contract is another step towards realising a military relevant scale magnetohydrodynamic drive, and we are delighted to be working with General Atomics on this important project. We’re excited to demonstrate how our HTS technology, born from our mission to deliver limitless, clean fusion energy, can enable a broad range of applications with significant industrial and commercial value across a range of sectors.”

“We are proud to be part of this groundbreaking collaboration and to provide our expertise in advanced magnet system integration,” said John Smith, senior director of Projects and Engineering for General Atomics Energy Group. “Our work with Tokamak Energy and HRL Laboratories shows how the unique strengths of each collaborator can overcome long-standing barriers in magnetohydrodynamic propulsion. At General Atomics, we have a proven record of delivering complex technologies for national security, energy, and scientific discovery, and this project highlights how our capabilities extend across multiple applications to strengthen U.S. leadership in innovation.”

Tokamak Energy launched TE Magnetics to focus on the industrial deployment of transformative HTS technology in September 2024.

MHD pumps generate force from a magnetic field acting on an electric current flowing through seawater, requiring no rotating mechanical components. This approach reduces noise while increasing reliability in comparison to conventional propeller- or impeller-based systems.

Tokamak Energy has made advances in rare-earth barium copper oxide (REBCO) superconducting material, and its advanced winding, testing and production techniques are the key to creating robust and reliable HTS magnets. Its HTS materials have demonstrated large-scale magnetic fields as high as 24 Telsa and will be critical in yielding an efficient MHD drive. The PUMP programme is a 42-month effort that aims to solve the electrode materials challenge.

Tokamak Energy does not have a contractual relationship with the U.S. Government on this program.

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Leicester-based Ridgway Machines will operate as a subsidiary of Tokamak Energy, with the existing brand, workforce and facility remaining unchanged.

TE Magnetics launched in September 2024 to focus on the industrial deployment of transformative high temperature superconductors (HTS). This is a key technology that will enable the next generation of energy-producing fusion devices and has the capacity to disrupt a range of sectors worth hundreds of billions of pounds.

Ridgway Machines, founded in 1920, develop solutions for winding and insulating superconducting magnets and cables, and will enable TE Magnetics to scale up its UK manufacturing facilities to produce commercial products fit for multiple industries.

Warrick Matthews, Tokamak Energy CEO, said: “Since launching the TE Magnetics brand, we have been successful in securing contracts for a range of HTS products and it is now time to scale up. The acquisition of Ridgway Machines, a thriving business with a highly skilled workforce, will accelerate TE Magnetics’ manufacturing method development to deliver high quality products at scale.

“Ridgway’s specialist engineering capabilities combined with TE Magnetics’ world-leading HTS design and prototyping knowledge will deliver breakthroughs in performance, efficiency, and accessibility across a wide range of industries, helping to address global challenges and accelerate the electric revolution.”

Andy Glanville, Ridgway Machines Managing Director, said: “Throughout our hundred-years history, Ridgway has always been forward looking. This track record means we are well suited to expansion and this new period of growth. In Tokamak Energy, we’re proud to be joining one of the UK’s most exciting technology businesses and to play our part in their ambitious and transformative plans.

“Both businesses exist to provide innovative solutions to some of the most pressing and important technological challenges the world is facing, and we can’t wait to get started on new projects together.”

HTS materials conduct electricity with virtually no power loss. When engineered into magnets, they generate exceptionally strong and stable magnetic fields within compact, lightweight systems – unlocking new possibilities in fusion energy and other applications ranging from electric zero emission flight to analytical science.

Tokamak Energy has pioneered HTS magnets since 2012, long before their importance for delivering clean, limitless fusion energy was widely recognised. Its advanced winding, testing and production techniques are key to creating robust and reliable HTS magnets for many industrial applications, including fusion, science and medicine, power systems, power distribution, manufacturing, and propulsion for land, water, air and space.

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It follows an international partnership between the UK and Japanese governments to collaborate on fusion energy, the power of the stars, announced today during a meeting between Kerry McCarthy, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Minister for Climate) and Hiroshi Masuko, Senior Deputy Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. During their meeting, both governments welcomed the signing of the agreement.

Tokamak Energy has built a wide network of government, commercial, scientific and academic partners in Japan in recent years. Together with Furukawa Electric, the company is supporting the FAST (Fusion Advanced Superconducting Tokamak) development project, which aims to demonstrate fusion-based electricity generation in the 2030s.

The partners will also pursue other uses for their transformative high temperature superconducting (HTS) magnet technology, which will unlock new levels of performance and sustainability in a range of industries including science and medicine, manufacturing, power generation and distribution, and land, water, air and space propulsion.

Furukawa Electric entered into an investment agreement with Tokamak Energy in December 2023, building on a longstanding strategic partnership aimed at realising zero carbon, safe and abundant fusion energy.

Warrick Matthews, Tokamak Energy CEO, said: “Our magnet technology is an essential part of turning the promise of limitless clean fusion energy into commercial reality. This new venture with Furukawa Electric Group will ramp up our manufacturing capabilities and open a new era of superconducting performance in a range of sectors, from powering data centres to revolutionising electric zero emission motors. Together we can make a global impact by transforming industry and driving innovation.”

Hideya Moridaira, President, Furukawa Electric Group, said: “We are truly honoured to take this important step forward with Tokamak Energy, deepening our collaboration and initiating efforts toward manufacturing HTS magnet technology for fusion energy in Japan. At Furukawa Electric Group, we have long been dedicated to the research and development of superconducting technologies, applying them across a wide range of fields including energy and healthcare.

“This partnership marks a significant milestone toward realising sustainable, safe, and virtually limitless fusion energy. By combining our HTS technology with Tokamak Energy’s innovative fusion technology, we are confident we can contribute meaningfully to the next generation of energy solutions.”

Climate Minister, Kerry McCarthy, said: “The UK is optimally positioned for global fusion investment, and by working closely with Japan we are developing fusion energy – delivering on our clean energy superpower mission and creating jobs in the industries of the future, all part of our Plan for Change.

“Global partnerships such as this one will advance technological developments and help unlock limitless clean fusion power, bringing a fusion energy future closer to a reality.”

Creating fusion energy requires strong magnetic fields to confine and control the extremely hot hydrogen fuel, which becomes a plasma several times hotter than the sun inside a vessel called a tokamak.

Strong magnetic fields are generated by passing large electrical currents through arrays of electromagnetic coils that surround the plasma. The magnets are wound with precision from HTS tapes, manufactured by Furukawa Electric and its group company, Super Power Inc., using multi-layered metal conductors with a crucial internal coating of ‘rare earth barium copper oxide’ (REBCO) superconducting material.

FAST is a private-sector-led collaboration between industry and academia, led by newly-formed Starlight Engine Ltd with support from experts in Japan and around the world. The project contributes significantly to the Japanese Government’s ‘Fusion Energy Innovation Strategy’, which sets a road map to commercialise fusion and achieve its decarbonisation goals.

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The scheme run by the Japanese capital was established six years ago to attract and support companies with high technological capabilities pioneering GX-related solutions.

Tokamak Energy, which incorporated a subsidiary company in Japan earlier this year, was recognised for its world-leading advances in transformative fusion energy and high temperature superconductors.

It is one of seven new awardees – from 59 entrants in 20 countries – selected as part of a drive to create innovation through collaboration and expand Tokyo’s sustainability capabilities.

Ross Morgan, Tokamak Energy Director of Strategic Partnerships, said: “We’re delighted to be welcomed by Tokyo Metropolitan Government under its innovative international program. Tokyo is the perfect city for developing both our fusion energy and high temperature superconducting (HTS) technology, and we look forward to exploring the range of exciting opportunities being part of this new collaboration will bring on our mission towards a future of clean, limitless energy.”

Tokamak Energy has built a wide network of government, commercial, scientific and academic partners in Japan in recent years, including with strategic investor Furukawa Electric, the University of Tokyo, Kyoto Fusioneering and Sumitomo Corporation.

The company is part of Japan’s FAST (Fusion by Advanced Superconducting Tokamak) project which aims to demonstrate fusion-based electricity generation in the 2030s.

It is a private-sector-led collaboration between industry and academia, led by newly-formed Starlight Engine Ltd with support from experts in Japan and around the world. The project fits with the Japanese Government’s ‘Fusion Energy Innovation Strategy’, which sets a road map to commercialise fusion and achieve its decarbonisation goals.

Kiyoshi Seko, CEO of Starlight Engine Ltd, said: “We would like to extend our congratulations to Tokamak Energy on this recognition by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. Our collaboration through the FAST project is an exciting endeavour, and together, with all our partners, we can accelerate the realisation of fusion energy.”

Tokamak Energy was founded in 2009 as a spin-off from UK Atomic Energy Authority and is headquartered near Oxford, UK. The company’s U.S. subsidiary, Tokamak Energy Inc., was established in 2019 and is one of eight companies selected by the Department of Energy for an award as part of its Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program.

Born from a world-class fusion energy mission, Tokamak Energy’s new business division TE Magnetics is leading the development and deployment of HTS technology. In collaboration with key manufacturing partners, it aims to become the leading supplier of HTS technology for applications including science, fusion, renewable energy and water, land, air and space propulsion.

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The American energy and defense giant will build a waveguide to transfer plasma-heating electromagnetic waves from a new gyrotron as part of a series of experiments on the path to delivering clean, limitless fusion power.

The crucial fuel-heating technology, which will be used in future fusion energy power plants, will start being installed on Tokamak Energy’s high field spherical tokamak ST40 this year.

The waveguide is an essential part of a project between the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the UK’s Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and Tokamak Energy that will accelerate the path to commercial fusion. Once the waveguide is in operation, the partners will advance the fusion science and technology needed to deliver a future pilot plant by testing lithium on the inner wall of ST40.

Warrick Matthews, Tokamak Energy CEO, said: “We have a strong relationship with General Atomics and are delighted to be working together on this crucial upgrade. Our record-breaking fusion machine has always punched above its weight and the new heating capabilities will be another exciting addition towards achieving our goal of abundant fusion energy for all.”

Michael Ginsberg, President, Tokamak Energy U.S., said: “We are delighted to work with General Atomics on this vital project. GA is a key enabler for a campaign that will advance joint U.S.-UK leadership in fusion, a critical step forward in the global race, particularly with China, for the future of energy.”

Anantha Krishnan, senior vice president for General Atomics Energy Group, said: “We’re thrilled to collaborate with Tokamak Energy on this important upgrade to their ST40 spherical tokamak. By combining GA’s expertise in high-power microwave technology and plasma heating with Tokamak Energy’s innovative technology program, we aim to advance fusion energy research and move closer to making clean, limitless power a reality.”

Tokamak Energy’s ST40 has reached a plasma ion temperature greater than 100 million degrees Celsius, the threshold required for commercial fusion energy and the highest achieved in a privately funded spherical tokamak.

Tokamak Energy recently presented the first details of its fusion energy pilot plant being designed as part of the DOE Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program, established for private firms to bring fusion towards technical and commercial viability.

The new gyrotron, built by Kyoto Fusioneering, will generate high-power electromagnetic waves for controlling and heating a hydrogen plasma many times hotter than the centre of the sun. Enabled by the GA waveguide, it will also be used to start up and drive plasma current.

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The £1 million Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Prosperity Partnership funding from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) will be used to performance-test shielding materials for high temperature superconducting (HTS) magnets.

Tokamak Energy is designing a pilot plant capable of generating 800 megawatts (MW) of fusion power. It will include a complete set of HTS magnets which are essential to confine and control the hydrogen fuel in a plasma many times hotter than the centre of the sun.

By combining leading research and simulation techniques, the partnership aims to deliver a validated spherical tokamak (ST) centre-column shield design using advanced tungsten-based materials capable of withstanding the harsh fusion conditions.

The UKRI funding, established to support ambitious collaborative research programmes, builds upon Tokamak Energy’s existing projects with the University of Birmingham on a range of materials and engineering topics, all focused on enabling commercially viable ST designs.

Itxaso Ariza, Tokamak Energy CTO, said: “Spherical tokamaks and HTS magnets are the most efficient and cost-effective route to delivering fusion, which will transform society and industry with clean, limitless and secure energy. We’re delighted to receive this prestigious award in collaboration with our partners for a vital project to accelerate designs for our fusion energy power plant. Results from this new project will provide the necessary data and significantly advance fusion materials development.”

Prof. Arunodaya Bhattacharya, University of Birmingham, said: “Engineering knowledge of the in-service degradation of shielding materials and translating this knowledge into a robust design is fundamental to delivering a successful spherical tokamak centre-column shield. Through this partnership, we are cementing the position of the University of Birmingham as a world-leading hub of fusion excellence and as a key partner to Tokamak Energy, advancing commercial fusion efforts globally.”

Tokamak Energy and the University of Birmingham will collaborate with German research institution Forschungszentrum Jülich, the French CNRS IJCLab, University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S., throughout the FUsion REactor SHielding Materials (FURESHMA) project, with UK Atomic Energy Authority playing an advisory role.

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The new gyrotron will generate high-power electromagnetic waves for controlling and heating a hydrogen plasma many times hotter than the centre of the sun. It will also be used to start up and drive plasma current.

Kyoto Fusioneering built the gyrotron, which will produce 1MW of Radio Frequency (RF) power, for Tokamak Energy over 18 months. It was delivered to the company’s Oxfordshire headquarters from Japan in late December 2024 ready for installation and commissioning.

The gyrotron upgrade complements a recently announced collaboration between the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the UK’s Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and Tokamak Energy. Once the gyrotron is in operation, the partners will be able to advance the fusion science and technology needed to deliver a future pilot plant by testing lithium on the inner wall of ST40.

Dr Ross Morgan, Director of Strategic Partnerships at Tokamak Energy, said: “We’re excited to work with our partners Kyoto Fusioneering to add this important upgrade to our record-breaking fusion machine, and continue to operate ST40 to test and push new boundaries. The results from future experiments using the high-power gyrotron heating system will provide critical data to inform the design of future spherical tokamak pilot plants, on our mission to commercialise clean and limitless fusion energy in the 2030s.”

Dr Satoshi Konishi, Kyoto Fusioneering’s CEO, Chief Fusioneer, and Co-Founder, said: “We are honoured to contribute to Tokamak Energy’s ST40, which stands as a benchmark for public-private partnerships and international collaboration. This partnership, bolstered by strong UK-Japan collaboration, represents a significant step forward in the pursuit of fusion energy. Committed to delivering world-class gyrotrons and exceptional engineering support, we look forward to working together to achieve the shared goal of clean, sustainable fusion power.”

Tokamak Energy’s ST40 has reached a plasma ion temperature greater than 100 million degrees Celsius, the threshold required for commercial fusion energy and the highest ever achieved in a privately funded spherical tokamak.

Tokamak Energy recently presented the first details of its fusion energy pilot plant being designed as part of the DOE Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program, established for private firms to bring fusion towards technical and commercial viability.

How does a gyrotron work?

A beam of electrons travels through a strong magnetic field which accelerates them to the point where they emit microwave radiation. This is directed through a waveguide to the plasma of fusion fuels – isotopes of hydrogen.

The frequency of the microwaves is tuned to match the cyclotron resonance frequency of the electrons in the plasma (104GHz or 137GHz in the case of ST40). When the microwaves interact with the plasma, they transfer energy to the electrons, which heats and drives the plasma.

A gyrotron, which uses Electron Cyclotron Resonance Heating (ECRH), solves one of the key challenges for a spherical tokamak – limited space for a central solenoid, which would otherwise be required to induce the plasma current. A gyrotron means the central solenoid can be reduced in size.

A big advantage over neutral beam heating is that gyrotrons can be positioned away from the device itself, whereas neutral beam heating needs to be very close.

On ST40, Tokamak Energy plans to use both its current neutral beam heating and gyrotron heating simultaneously. This will build greater understanding of how a gyrotron works, the control systems needed and the best balance between the two forms of heating.

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Fusion powers the sun and stars, and, if harnessed on Earth, can provide an abundant, safe, and carbon-emissions-free energy source.

In December 2023, the DOE and DESNZ announced a fusion strategic partnership to advance both the U.S. Bold Decadal Vision for Commercial Fusion Energy and the UK’s Fusion Strategy.

A major goal of the partnership is to establish shared access to and development of facilities needed for fusion research and development (R&D). Through the DOE-DESNZ-Tokamak Energy collaboration, researchers at universities, national laboratories, and institutes in both the U.S. and UK will be able to benefit from the research carried out on the company’s privately owned ST40 spherical tokamak.

Tokamak Energy, the only private company with more than 10 years’ experience designing, building and operating tokamaks, is one of eight awardees of the DOE’s Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program, where DOE partners with the private sector to advance R&D toward realising industry-led designs for a fusion pilot plant.

Dr Geraldine Richmond, DOE Under Secretary for Science and Innovation, said: “This represents a huge leverage opportunity for advancing fusion science and technology. These new investments will strengthen our partnerships with the private sector and our international allies. Each partner stands to gain significantly more than the funds committed.”

Kerry McCarthy, Minister for Climate in DESNZ, said: “Fusion has the potential to be a clean and sustainable energy source, transforming how we power our country, and countries around the world. This strategic partnership is therefore crucial to develop this new and exciting technology, and bring it into use quicker, and is a vote of confidence in the skills and expertise of those working in this innovative new field in the United Kingdom and United States.”

Warrick Matthews, Tokamak Energy CEO, said: “Our high field spherical tokamak ST40 has achieved impressive results in recent years, and we are thrilled to commence ST40’s new mission through this strong public private partnership. This program will advance fusion science and technology for spherical tokamaks and the industry more broadly, in pursuit of a common goal to deliver fusion power.”

Fusion requires the simultaneous achievement of three conditions within the plasma fuel: the particles must be hot enough (temperature), close enough (density), and retain their heat for long enough (energy confinement time) to release net energy.

Technological advances in the confining magnets are expected to enable the achievement of fusion-relevant conditions in more compact and potentially more economical devices. In a previous partnership with the DOE’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Tokamak Energy’s ST40 achieved fusion-relevant temperatures six times hotter than the core of the sun.

The goal of this work is to enable fusion conditions with good confinement that is compatible with sustainment for long durations in a future fusion pilot plant, by coating the inner wall of ST40 device with the element lithium.

“PPPL pioneered the use of lithium coatings in fusion back in the 90s. We’ve since refined our understanding of the radical confinement improvements these coatings can enable, and we’re excited to see this expertise leveraged by and advanced in collaboration with the private fusion industry,” said PPPL Director Steven Cowley.

Both PPPL and ORNL will be assisting in the ST40 facility upgrade. PPPL will lend their expertise in lithium coatings, while ORNL will assist in deploying pellet fueling capabilities. “Our previous experience collaborating with TE on ST40 was very fruitful, and we’re happy to help strengthen the potential of this machine,” said ORNL Fusion Energy Division Director Troy Carter, who also led the development of the 2020 Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee’s (FESAC) Long Range Plan (LRP). “The expansion of public-private partnerships for fusion was a key recommendation from the FESAC LRP and I’m very happy to see new programs like this implemented.”

Jean Paul Allain, the DOE’s Office of Science Associate Director for Fusion Energy Sciences, said: “We’re eager to see this new capability on ST40. What excites me most is the possibility of deploying our university and national lab scientists to leverage this new capability through our Private Facility Research program. It’s these publicly supported scientists, collaborating with their colleagues at private facilities, who drive the major advances needed in this field to support a competitive U.S. fusion power industry.”

The project will start in 2025 and the total funding of $52 million is divided evenly among all three partners.

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