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Groundbreaking Nuclear Fusion Deal Could Be Revolutionary

Can Helion really provide 500MW to US steelmakers by 2030?

Will Lockett

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5 min read

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3 days ago

For decades, nuclear fusion has promised to be the utopian future of energy. Through it, we can access copious amounts of energy with no carbon emissions and basically no nuclear waste. But, after years of trying, such world-changing technology has failed to come to fruition, and fusion power has started to feel like a never-ending Sisyphean task. But we might be a lot closer to unlocking this holy grain of energy than you might think. That is if you believe the deals Helion is making. Let me explain.

Helion is a nuclear fusion startup that was founded in 2013 with funding from NASA to explore a new type of fusion reactor. Their unique approach has enabled them to make massive leaps forward, and they have even claimed that they can start delivering commercial fusion power plants as early as 2028 (more on their technology in a minute). If you want to know more about them and how fusion works, go to my previous article here. Such brash claims have drawn significant attention and investment from the likes of Microsoft. But recently, Helion announced that a US steelmaker, Nucor, has invested $35 million into them, and in turn, they will collaborate, and Helion will deliver a 500 MW fusion power plant to Nucor for use in their mills by 2030.

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But there is a problem here. You see, no one is even close to generating power with fusion, let alone a commercial 500 MW plant.

Helion’s current reactors require more energy to run than the fusion reactions actually produce, making them useless as energy sources.

Now, there are reactors out there that can create a net-gain in energy. Back in December 2022, the National Ignition Facility (NIF) reached “ignition.” This is a state where heat from fusion reactions causes more fusion in a chain reaction type process, also known as a “burning plasma.” This enabled them to create a reaction that emitted 54% more energy than they pumped into it. But even NIF is miles away from actually producing power. The laser they use to initiate fusion is only 0.5% efficient, and the steam-based…