Fusion Energy

Fusion is developing fast and gaining momentum as a climate solution. It has the potential to generate four times more energy per kilogram of fuel than nuclear fission, and nearly four million times more energy than burning oil or coal, without emitting greenhouse gases or generating high activity or long lived nuclear waste.

Fusion energy is making progress. There have been momentous achievements in the field. Meanwhile, more than US$6 billion has gone into the private sector. We are at a crucial moment in the development of the field and there are new stakeholders who want to be — and need to be — part of the dialogue. The IAEA will convene the inaugural World Fusion Energy Group in 2024.
Rafael Mariano Grossi, IAEA Director General

In October 2023, the 29th IAEA Fusion Energy Conference, organized by the Agency and hosted by the United Kingdom, attracted some 2000 participants from more than 80 countries and from many different fusion initiatives, both public and private. For an entire week, fusion scientists, engineers, policy makers, regulators and entrepreneurs gathered to review recent developments and chart the way to a future with fusion energy. The diverse range of topics covered in the scientific sessions included magnetic confinement, inertial fusion, materials science, machine designs and plasma physics. In addition, socioeconomic issues relevant to fusion, including energy justice, social licensing, public engagement and publicprivate partnerships, were discussed.

IAEA Fusion Energy Conference Opener 2023

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) fosters the exchange of scientific and technical results in nuclear fusion research and development through its series of Fusion Energy Conferences. The 29th Fusion Energy Conference (FEC 2023) aims to provide a forum for the discussion of key physics and technology issues as well as innovative concepts of direct relevance to the use of nuclear fusion as a future source of energy. This video introduces the current state of the field.

During the conference, the Director General introduced the first IAEA World Fusion Outlook, a global reference for authoritative information on the latest developments in fusion energy, and announced the inaugural meeting of the World Fusion Energy Group in 2024. This group will bring together not just fusion scientists and engineers from laboratories and experimental centres, but also a set of diverse stakeholders including policymakers, financiers, regulators and private companies, in a dialogue that will drive fusion development forward.

Additionally, fusion experts will work with the Agency to outline key elements such as fusion-related definitions, characteristics and criteria to help develop a common understanding among stakeholders, which will be essential for global deployment.

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