Ministers pledge record $410 million to support UK fusion energy | nuclear power

The British government has pledged a record $410 million investment in nuclear fusion that could help build a world-leading fusion power project on the site of an old coal power station in Nottinghamshire.

Ministers hope the funding to be provided in the coming financial year will support the rapid development of the UK's fusion energy sector and deliver a future powered by limitless clean energy.

The funding includes the development of a prototype power plant at the now-decommissioned West Burton coal-fired power station in Nottinghamshire by 2040 and the UK's Culham Center for Fusion Energy in Oxfordshire. It will involve repurposing a pioneering fusion machine.

It follows the government's pledge to provide significant support for fusion research in its first autumn budget since coming to power last year.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said the investment means the UK is now within striking distance of harnessing the power of the sun and providing families with safe, clean and unlimited energy.

A fusion reactor simulator used for training at JET at the Culham Fusion Energy Center in Abingdon, Oxfordshire. Photo: Haydn Denman/Alamy

Nuclear fusion is considered the holy grail of energy because it promises limitless clean energy without greenhouse gases or radioactive waste byproducts. This involves breaking light elements, such as hydrogen, together to form heavier elements, releasing huge amounts of energy in the process. This process, which also helps generate the heat and light of the Sun and other stars, means that one kilogram of fusion fuel can provide the same energy as 10 million kilograms of fossil fuel.

But those pinning their hopes on nuclear fusion to help solve the climate crisis may need to temper their optimism. Despite more than 70 years of research, supported by the world's most developed countries, and some recent technological breakthroughs, scientists are still decades away from harnessing the power of nuclear fusion in a viable power plant.

The ITER fusion project, a flagship research program supported by 35 governments, was expected to begin operations in southern France by the end of 2025 after 18 years of work. But in July last year it admitted it was operating almost a decade behind schedule. The small-scale project, developed by a private company spun out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US, hopes to be the first to begin operation by the end of this year and will eventually have a capacity of 140 megawatts.

Unveiling the new UK investment, Miliband said: The UK is at the forefront of this global race to deliver fusion, and today's record levels of funding will deliver investment and economic growth through our plan for change, delivering net zero and creating clean energy. future.

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The government has shortlisted five engineering and construction companies to help build a Nottinghamshire factory by 2040. It hopes to revitalize Britain's industrial heartland by supporting new, skilled jobs in former coal communities.

Planned work to repurpose the Joint European Torus (JET) project, an convergence project that recently concluded at Culham Centre, comes at a site where the government has proposed plans for the UK's first AI growth zone in response to high demand. It takes place at the same location. In southeast England, both energy and water are scarce.

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