Annual market could be worth around £167bn by 2100 Fusion energy is “closer than ever” and the UK government believes that the time is right for decisive and strategic action to make the most of an annual market that in 2100 could be worth around £52bn, rising to £167bn if the capital cost of fusion power plants could be reduced by 30%.

In a paper outlining the government’s fusion strategy, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said the realisation of fusion energy will require continued collaboration with other nations and international organisations, with academia and technical experts, and with businesses and industry groups all around the world.

“The challenges of fusion energy remain considerable,” the paper says. “As with any technically demanding goal, there will be setbacks. However, advances in fusion science and engineering capabilities mean that there is increasing confidence in the fusion sector’s ability to overcome these.”

The paper says the “overarching goals” of the fusion strategy are for the UK to demonstrate the commercial viability of fusion by building a prototype fusion power plant in the UK that puts energy on the grid; and for the UK to build a world-leading fusion industry which can export fusion technology around the world in subsequent decade.

A 10-point plant for a green industrial revolution, released by prime minister Boris Johnson in November 2020, said the government wants the UK to be the first country in the world to commercialise fusion energy technology. As part of this, it aims to demonstrate the commercial viability of fusion by building a prototype fusion power plant, Step (spherical tokamak for energy production).

The UK hopes to deliver the world’s first prototype fusion power plant by 2040 and has said the site of the demonstration plant is expected to be announced next year.

The UK government has also published a paper setting out its proposals for the regulation of fusion energy. The proposals cover the regulation of: occupational and public health and safety; environmental protection; planning consent; third party liabilities; security and safeguards for radioactive material.

Fusion energy research aims to capture the same energy process that powers the Sun, and forms part of the government’s long-term plans to harness new technologies that reduce reliance on fossil fuels and exposure to volatile global gas prices. A fusion power plant would combine hydrogen atoms to generate energy without producing the carbon emissions that contribute to climate change.