Companies pledge to build a private-sector led stellarator-based design in the UK, targeting commercial operation in 2034
With a commitment from King Charles III in front of the US Congress last week that the UK and the US are combining talent and resources in the technologies of tomorrow, Type One Energy, Tokamak Energy, and AECOM announced yesterday that they are forming the UK Infinity Fusion Consortium. The consortium is a private-sector-led effort to develop the first commercial fusion power plant project in the United Kingdom, which targets commercial operation in 2034. The consortium will combine Type One Energy’s stellarator fusion power plant design, AECOM’s leading engineering capabilities, and Tokamak Energy’s high temperature superconductor (HTS) magnet technology and manufacturing expertise in the UK. The program is consistent with the long-term goals of the government’s recently announced UK Fusion Strategy.
“Fusion needs to be delivered, not just developed,” said Chris Mowry, Chief Executive Officer of Type One Energy. “This Consortium brings together the core industrial capabilities in the UK and US required to deploy real-world fusion power plant projects that are commercially viable. By aligning fusion technology, advanced manufacturing, and power plant engineering, we are closing the gap between today’s energy innovation and tomorrow’s energy infrastructure. Our initiative is fully aligned with UK and US ambitions to be leaders in commercial fusion deployment.”
Plant is Second to Utilize Type One Energy’s Stellarator Design
The plant, similar to the Infinity Type II fusion power plant project at the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Bull Run site in the United States, targets production of 400 megawatts of electricity (MWe). It will include participation by the broader UK fusion value chain spanning construction, finance, offtake, and other supply chain partners in the UK. This solution is also the second fusion plant announced for the UK, shortly after the Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production (STEP) program tokamak-based fusion machine, which is targeting the former West Burton coal-fired power plant station in Nottinghamshire, England.
“This Consortium puts Tokamak Energy’s transformative magnet technology and manufacturing expertise in the center of another world-class fusion program,” said Warwick Matthews, Chief Executive Officer of Tokamak Energy. “Together, we can accelerate towards commercializing a new form of limitless, clean energy and, in combination with our role as STEP magnet systems partner, strengthen the UK supply chain’s leadership in global fusion.”
Troy Rudd, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, AECOM, said: “Fusion represents one of the most important long-term energy solutions, offering a clean, safe and reliable source of power for future generations. Delivering on fusion’s potential requires disciplined engineering, well-established infrastructure delivery models and collaboration across the entire energy ecosystem. Through this Consortium, AECOM is bringing its global experience in complex energy infrastructure to help lay the groundwork for commercial fusion projects that can scale with confidence, supporting the UK’s energy system while strengthening its industrial and infrastructure base.”
Extending Type One Energy’s FusionDirect Technology Program
Stellarators are one of the top performing fusion concepts in the race to reach Q>1 and enough facility gain to generate electricity commercially. By using the Type One Energy stellarator, the UK Infinity Consortium harvests the benefits of Stellarators found in the HSX and W7-X machines. These machines, which demonstrate excellent agreement between theory and real-world design, further the use of the stellarator concept. With scientific validations complete, these pilot plants can proceed to achieve stellarator fuel ignition conditions, and put electricity from fusion on the grid. It also utilizes high performance computing (HPC) approaches to optimize the stellarator design. These efforts are also the second announced plant that both Tokamak Energy and Type One Energy are developing.
