Canadian company secures funding for fusion protoype

Tuesday, 17 December 2019

The prototype facility is intended to confirm the performance of General Fusion's magnetised target fusion technology in a "power plant relevant environment". The funding is made up of USD$65 million of so-called Series E equity financing, led by Singapore-based global investment company Temasek, together with the release of CAD50 million (USD38 million) in additional investment from Canada's Strategic Innovation Fund.

"The world is pivoting toward fusion as the necessary complement to other technologies which, collectively, will enable the carbon-free energy future we all need,” General Fusion CEO Christofer Mowry said. “The success of our financing is further evidence that the global stakeholders in this endeavor are leaning into this challenge with action."

General Fusion, which is based in Vancouver, Canada, was established in 2002 and is funded by a global syndicate of energy venture capital firms, industry leaders, and technology pioneers. The company's Magnetised Target Fusion system uses a sphere filled with molten lead-lithium that is pumped to form a vortex.  A pulse of magnetically-confined plasma fuel is then injected into the vortex, and a pressure wave compresses the plasma to create fusion conditions. This process is then repeated, while the heat from the reaction is captured in the liquid metal and used to generate electricity via a steam turbine.