Fusion energy, long dismissed as “always 30 years away,” is edging closer to reality, according to new analysis by IDTechEx.
In its latest report, “Fusion Energy Market 2025-2045: Technologies, Players, Timelines,” the research firm explores whether fusion could deliver commercial power within the next decade.
Since 2020, the fusion sector has seen a surge in momentum. Private companies have raised more than US$9 billion, while scientific breakthroughs in plasma physics, the urgent demand for clean energy and advances in high-tech materials have driven fusion from theory into a fast-growing commercial race.
IDTechEx highlights how technologies like high-temperature superconductors, short-pulse lasers and new plasma simulation models have matured, enabling ambitious new reactor designs.
Magnetic confinement, typified by the ITER tokamak project, remains dominant but alternatives like laser-driven inertial confinement are gaining traction, buoyed by major breakthroughs such as the National Ignition Facility’s energy-positive fusion experiment.
Today, at least seven major technical approaches are vying for success, with leading startups planning demonstrator plants and aiming for grid-connected fusion energy by 2035.
However, significant challenges remain, including the need for far greater investment, a resilient supply chain for critical materials and regulatory frameworks tailored to fusion’s unique characteristics.
Whether fusion will finally break through this decade remains uncertain—but the race to harness star power is well and truly underway.
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