The ‘ST40’ device in which this was achieved was built by Tokamak Energy and commissioned in 2017. It is the third machine in a five-stage plan to achieve abundant, clean fusion energy. The company plans to produce industrial scale energy by 2025.
The Tokamak Energy approach is based on well-established science and is advancing rapidly. The next target for the Tokamak Energy team is to push on to achieve the temperatures necessary for controlled fusion on Earth.
Tokamak Energy grew out of the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy in Oxfordshire. A key innovation is that the company combines spherical tokamaks with the latest generation of high temperature superconducting magnets (HTS).
Jonathan Carling, CEO at Tokamak Energy:
“We are taking significant steps towards achieving fusion energy and doing so with the agility of a private venture, driven by the goal of achieving something that will have huge benefits worldwide.
“Reaching 15 million degrees is yet another indicator of the progress at Tokamak Energy and a further validation of our approach. Our aim is to make fusion energy a commercial reality by 2030. We view the journey as a series of engineering challenges, raising additional investment on reaching each new milestone.”
Dr David Kingham, Co-founder of Tokamak Energy, commented:
“The world needs abundant, controllable, clean energy. Our business plan is built on strong scientific foundations and this milestone is a significant step in our compact spherical tokamak route to fusion power.
“Fusion is a major challenge, but one that must be tackled. We believe that with collaboration, dedication and investment, fusion will be an important part of achieving deep decarbonisation of the global energy supply in the 2030s and beyond.”