Proxima Fusion Invests €140M in Key Fusion Component Largely Supplied by Asian Markets
Proxima Fusion is focusing on a vital element for its fusion reactors: superconducting tape.
On Wednesday, Proxima Fusion announced its plans to establish a €140 million ($162.6 million) facility dedicated to producing fusion-ready high-temperature superconducting (HTS) tape, a crucial component for its reactor architecture.
This decision follows a recent funding round in which Proxima raised €411 million, propelling it to the forefront of the well-supported fusion startups. The company, headquartered in Germany, aims to finance the factory through a combination of public and private investments, with €21 million contributed by the state of Lower Saxony.
Proxima plans to utilize HTS tape to generate strong magnetic fields necessary for confining the plasma essential for initiating fusion reactions.
For its demonstration facility, Proxima will require 20,000 kilometers of HTS tape, while the commercial power plant will utilize double that amount. Currently, most HTS tape production occurs in China and Japan.
HTS tape emerged just over a decade ago as a pivotal advancement that has facilitated the emergence of today’s fusion energy enterprises. This material can produce significant magnetic fields at relatively high temperatures, allowing for more compact and efficient reactor designs.
While fusion energy is anticipated to account for a major share of global HTS tape usage, other firms, such as Veir, are also employing it to enhance both efficiency and power density in data centers.
