Public-Private Partnerships
Developing the technology for a fusion power plant cannot be done by the federal government alone. The Fusion Energy Sciences program has a suite of public-private partnership programs to support a growing fusion power industry. These partnerships will foster bridges between the public and private sectors. They will help both groups address foundational gaps and accelerate fusion’s path toward commercial viability.
Milestone-Based Fusion Energy Development Program
The Milestone-Based Fusion Energy Development Program supports startup companies as they work to establish viable fusion pilot plant designs. The program has a near-term goal of delivering preconceptual designs and technology roadmaps for fusion pilot plants. It also seeks to enable significant performance improvements of fusion pilot plant concepts.
This first-of-its kind milestone program has a unique award mechanism called Technology Investment Agreements. These agreements offer flexible, tailorable terms – including intellectual property – that are more amenable to private industry participation than traditional federal award mechanisms.
Team projects include tokamaks, stellarators, inertial fusion energy devices, and alternate approaches. So far, the teams have met multiple milestones. Once teams meet their initial milestones, their progress is reviewed to determine if the research proceeds into the next phase. Awardees plan to build and operate integrated experiments and/or demonstrate some of the critical underlying technologies for their fusion power plants.
From the initial award cadre of eight teams, four teams have collectively raised over $1.2 billion of new private funding, compared to the $46 million of federal funding initially committed.
Fusion Innovation Research Engine Collaboratives (FIRE)
The Fusion Innovation Research Engine (FIRE) Collaboratives address critical science and technology gaps, which are informed by the private sector. They aim to create a fusion energy science and technology innovation ecosystem.
These virtual, centrally-managed teams have a collective goal of bridging FES’ basic science research programs with the needs of the fusion industry. They also help provide coordination among elements of the Fusion Energy Sciences program.
FIRE Collaboratives support materials and technologies required by a diverse set of fusion concepts. They include capabilities for testing nuclear blankets, materials testing, advanced simulation, target injector technology development, and fusion fuel-cycle testing.
Innovation Network for Fusion Energy (INFUSE)
The Innovation Network for Fusion Energy (INFUSE) program provides private-sector fusion companies with access to world-class expertise and capabilities at DOE’s National Laboratories and U.S. universities. It provides vouchers to start-up companies that allow them to use publicly supported fusion infrastructure and expertise. These resources and expertise will help these start-up companies overcome critical scientific and technological hurdles.
So far, FES has provided over 120 vouchers. This program reduces barriers to collaboration between businesses and National Laboratories or universities. The vouchers support research in materials science, laser technology development, high temperature superconducting magnet assessment, artificial intelligence for fusion modeling and simulation, and enabling technologies.
Learn more about research supported by the Fusion Energy Sciences program:
