Summary: We will design, develop and build a fusion power plant by 2040, putting the UK at the forefront of this exciting new source of clean energy.
- As we work towards decarbonising our economy and securing the UK’s energy supply for the decades to come, fusion power has the potential to transform our energy supplies for the better.
- We will design and build a commercially viable fusion power plant by 2040, backed up by an initial £220 million to develop this clean, safe and inexhaustible form of power that produces none of the long-lived radioactive waste produced by a conventional nuclear reactor.
- We will secure the UK’s position as the leading nation in the world when it comes to fusion technology, attracting millions in inward investment, creating jobs and supporting exports.
Background
- Nuclear fusion offers clean, safe and carbon-free fuel supplies, helping to power us towards our net zero by 2050 target. Fusion is a zero-carbon, combustion free source of energy that uses inexhaustible hydrogen as its fuel source. It does not create greenhouse gases or radioactive waste as convention nuclear fission reactors do.
Our solution
- We will design, develop and build a fusion power plant by 2040, to provide clean energy and position the UK as the leading nation of this exciting new technology. We will invest an initial £220 million in the first five-year development phase of the Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production (STEP), setting us on the path to develop and build a commercially viable fusion power plant by 2040.
- We will invest almost £200 million to create a global centre for fusion expertise, bringing the best and most innovative firms to our shores. The funding will be used to upgrade the Culham campus where our current fusion research is based, transforming it into a unique global centre for private sector fusion R&D firms, attracting millions in inward investment and bringing expertise and innovation to the UK.
Conservative record
- The UK is already a world leader in fusion research and technology. At Budget 2018, we committed £20 million to the development of a new UK based nuclear fusion reactor. We have also given £50 million to upgrade the UK’s existing fusion research reactor and are building new fusion R&D facilities to secure the UK around £1 billion in international contracts.
Q: The UK has struggled with big nuclear projects recently, why will this be any different?
Unlike the last Labour Government which failed to deliver any new nuclear projects, we are currently in the process of delivering the UK’s first new fission nuclear power plant for a generation. We already have some of the best fusion expertise in the world, giving us the best springboard from which to design and build a brand new type of reactor.
