Commonwealth Fusion Systems, a U.S.-based company working to generate electricity by replicating the process that powers stars, said on July 1 that it is joining a UK government program aimed at demonstrating fuel production for fusion reactors.
The company is the first international participant in the UK Atomic Energy Authority’s Lithium Breeding Tritium Innovation program, known as LIBRTI. The agreement follows momentum from King Charles’ address to the U.S. Congress in April.
Fusion, which remains experimental, produces energy by forcing light atoms together under extremely high temperatures. Tritium, a form of hydrogen used as fuel in fusion reactors, is extremely rare in nature but can be produced through a process known as breeding. In that process, neutrons released from fusion reactions strike a blanket lined with lithium to generate tritium.
Massachusetts-based Commonwealth Fusion Systems has raised about $3 billion, more than any other company seeking to build fusion power plants. Its investors include Bill Gates and Nvidia, among others.
Commonwealth said the project will help demonstrate that its ARC power plants can generate their own fuel supply. The company expects its first ARC plant to begin generating power in the early 2030s.
The UK is investing the equivalent of about $292 million in the LIBRTI program.
