Monday 15 November 2021

Fusion energy to get £2.3m boost

The UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) has awarded innovation contracts worth an overall £2.3 million to accelerate the development of fusion energy.

The announcement follows claims made by scientists earlier this week at the COP26 climate summit, that fusion energy would be the future of the low carbon world.

UKAEA is providing 15 organisations with contracts worth between £50,000 and £250,000 to develop commercial fusion energy - using both digital engineering and hydrogen technology.

Assystem, First Light Fusion, Full Matrix, the University of Manchester and the University of Bristol are some of the organisations that have received the funding; awarded through the UK government’s ‘Small Business Research Initiative’.

Tim Bestwick, UKAEA’s Chief Technology Officer, said: “Fusion energy holds enormous promise as a low carbon energy source for the world but it is technically very challenging.

“This scheme is helping engage a range of organisations and industrial partners to address these important challenges. We are very pleased to have the opportunity to work alongside these organisations and hope to include many others as the scheme develops.”