Fusion Friday: This Week’s News

by | Feb 7, 2025 | Fusion Energy

February 7, 2025

Things You Gotta Know

Private Companies Aim to Demonstrate Working Fusion Reactors by 2025

Several private firms are gearing up to unveil large-scale fusion reactors in 2025, aiming to achieve fusion-friendly plasma temperatures.

China Makes Progress in Nuclear Fusion Race

China has announced significant progress in its nuclear fusion program. State-backed efforts and substantial investments are contributing to rapid developments in this field.

Senate Confirms Chris Wright as U.S. Energy Secretary

The U.S. Senate has confirmed Chris Wright, a fracking industry executive, as the new Energy Secretary. Wright’s appointment signals a potential shift in energy policy, with expectations of increased support for fossil fuel development and possible reevaluation of existing climate initiatives.

Company Profile: Peak Nano

BY MICHAEL HEUMANN

Interview with Mike Ponting, CTO at Peak Nano. Peak Nano Systems brings nanotechnology out of the labs and into full scale production for government, military, and industrial applications. We utilize our US-based design and manufacturing capabilities to develop our products. We rely on our deeply experienced business, technical, and manufacturing teams to deliver on our commitments to our customers. This allows us to utilize our foundational technology of nanolayered films to provide positive impacts to multiple industries.

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Is the Chinese “Great Fusion Dragon” Real?

BY MICHAEL HEUMANN

What China’s aggressive investments and rapid progress in fusion technology mean for global energy leadership. One of the bigger players in the fusion energy game is China. China’s desire to be first in fusion is very understandable. China is the world’s largest consumer of electricity, utilizing an estimated 9.9 trillion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity in 2024. Moreover, China’s electrical growth is expected to increase between 6% and 7% over the next decade.

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Can Fusion Happen Without Trump?

BY MICHAEL HEUMANN

Political shifts, public-private partnerships, and the race against China are shaping the funding—and future—of commercial fusion energy. What level of funding will fusion energy receive funding in the 2025 budget? Can the private sector fusion energy deliver commercial fusion without public funding?

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[On-Demand Webinar] 1M Fusion Jobs – Who Will Fill Them and Where

SPONSORED CONTENT

How Did We Get To 1M Fusion Jobs? Explore how the U.S. can build a fusion-ready workforce to meet global demand for 1M jobs by 2040. The race to build a fusion-ready workforce is on, and if we don’t act now, we risk losing this transformative opportunity to global competitors.

Watch Webinar >

The Fusion Report: The Business of Fusion Energy is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Fusion Friday: This Week’s News

by | Jan 31, 2025 | Fusion Energy

January 31, 2025

Things You Gotta Know

Nuclear Fusion Company Eyes Alameda Point for Expansion

A nuclear fusion energy company is exploring the possibility of setting up operations at Alameda Point, a former naval air station in California. The move could bring cutting-edge clean energy research and job opportunities to the region. Local officials are considering the proposal, which aligns with broader efforts to develop sustainable energy solutions and repurpose the site for high-tech industries.

Helion Raises $425M in Series F Funding to Accelerate Fusion Energy

Helion Energy has received significant investment to advance its nuclear fusion technology with the goal of supplying Microsoft with fusion-generated electricity by 2028. The funding will accelerate the development of Helion’s Polaris fusion reactor.

China Allegedly Running Secret Nuclear Fusion Facility

Reports suggest that China may be operating a secret nuclear fusion research facility to accelerate its progress toward commercial fusion energy. The project, which has not been officially confirmed, is believed to focus on advanced plasma confinement techniques.

Trump 2.0: U.S. House Of Representatives Energy Committees and Members

BY MICHAEL HEUMANN

Examining the legislative agenda and its impact on U.S. Energy markets. In the first meeting of the 119th Congress House Committee on Energy and Commerce on January 15, 2025, Chairman Guthrie identified three key focus areas for the Committee. One of these, “Securing America Energy Dominance,” focuses on making energy more affordable and reliable, strengthening the reliability of the US electric grid, reducing the “rulemaking agenda” on energy production, and reinforcing baseload power resources such as natural gas, nuclear, coal, and hydropower.

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The “Yin and Yang” of Fusion Funding

BY MICHAEL HEUMANN

Private investment surges as governments take diverging paths. Three important announcements related to the commercialization of fusion energy occurred this week. Unsurprisingly, these announcements point in very different directions regarding the future of fusion energy. Let’s examine each of these, and what they mean for fusion energy.

Go Deeper >

[On-Demand Webinar] 1M Fusion Jobs – Who Will Fill Them and Where

SPONSORED CONTENT

How Did We Get To 1M Fusion Jobs? Explore how the U.S. can build a fusion-ready workforce to meet global demand for 1M jobs by 2040. The race to build a fusion-ready workforce is on, and if we don’t act now, we risk losing this transformative opportunity to global competitors.

Watch Webinar >

The Fusion Report: The Business of Fusion Energy is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.