The Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) and United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority have agreed to a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to collaborate on fusion technology.
The MOU builds on the King Charles III address to the joint meeting of Congress in Washington, D.C. in April, according to the U.K. Atomic Energy Authority’s June 25 press release. The April 28 meeting highlighted partnerships between the U.K. and the United States on fusion and quantum computing.
U.K. Atomic Energy Authority said the MOU sets out a program of collaboration with a varying range of fusion disciplines to support both nations’ ambitions to deploy commercial fusion. Under the MOU, DOE’s Princeton Plasma lab and the UK Atomic Energy Authority will seek to grow academic and scientific cooperation through fusion science and technology.
According to the release, this collaboration would include access to major research facilities, joint projects, advanced computing programs and “wider information sharing over the coming years.” The two entities said the agreement will focus on advancing the physics and technology basis for future fusion power plants.
“PPPL and UKAEA [the U.K. Atomic Energy Authority] have each led groundbreaking, flagship fusion experiments,” Associate Laboratory Director for Strategy and Partnerships, Deputy Chief Research Officer at PPPL Laura Berzak Hopkins said. “This strategic partnership allows us to unite our capabilities and deliver on our shared mission of bringing fusion from the lab to the grid.”
This marks another strategic Trans-Atlantic collaboration that was sparked by the King Charles III address. In May, Type One Energy, AECOM and Tokamak Energy formed a U.K.-based fusion consortium and plans to pursue the development of the first private-sector-led fusion power in the U.K.
