Japan: Helical bets on stellarators for nuclear power with new funds
Japan-based Helical Fusion Company has announced the closure of its Series A funding round. The money raised will help the company accelerate the “Helix Program” – a roadmap towards a steady-state net power fusion plant in the 2030s.
The company is moving ahead towards commercial fusion with a stellarator design.
The Tokyo-based company intends to initially develop a pilot reactor based on the helical method, a magnetic confinement technique. The program is based on the worldwide research, particularly the one conducted at the National Institute for Fusion Science (NIFS) in Japan, home to the Large Helical Device (LHD).
Helical Fusion also has plans to commercialize the power once the reactor is successfully developed.
The funding round
The company says that it raised $15 million (JPY 2.3 billion) in funding, which brings its total capital, including grants and loans, to $35 million (JPY 5.2 billion).
The funding round saw investors’ participation, such as SBI Investment, Keio Innovation Initiative (KII), and 19 other institutions.
The company’s CEO, Takaya Taguchi, said in a press release that the goal of Helical Fusion is to build “another sun on Earth.”
“Around the world, fusion development is accelerating. Yet among all the methods, our stellarator approach stands on the shoulders of decades of research conducted at Japanʼs top universities and national institutes,” Taguchi said.
“When we consider whatʼs realistically achievable with todayʼs technology, we are sure that we are the one. Our technology will be an invaluable asset not just for Asia, but for humanity.”
He went on to add that commercial fusion is “the ultimate step in humanityʼs energy journey.”
The fusion reaction of hydrogen isotopes (like deuterium and tritium) using 1 gram (equivalent to 5 balloons) produces the same energy as burning 8 tons of oil (equivalent to 50 drums), according to Helical Fusion.
Helical Fusion’s fusion plant goal
The company is running the Helix Program, which comprises of two important parts. The first is the Helix Haruka, which is an intermediate device for component and system validation.
The second is its flagship, called the Helix Kanata, a full-scale pilot plant designed for steady-state, net-electric fusion power.
The Helix Kanata, as per the company, is going to provide round-the-clock energy to meet the needs of the globe in a carbon-neutral fashion. The same can also be used in outer space missions, for establishing human bases on the moon and beyond.
The company says that it has an advantage over others as the stellarator has a proven track record of steady-state operation, backed by decades of experimental data.
The stellarator design takes a magnetic confinement approach that enables inherently stable, continuous plasma operation. Moreover, it also promises high maintainability for more uptime when energy generation can take place and an energy-positive performance.
What sets the Helical Stellarator apart from other approaches is that it has already cleared the critical scientific phase of plasma, an essential requirement for a commercial fusion plant, the company says in the press release.
Helical Fusion is now joining hands with industry leaders to make the commercial fusion plant a reality.
These partnerships span a wide range of technical domains, including the development of proprietary high-temperature superconducting magnets and liquid metal blankets, among others.