Fusion Google: the company will receive 200 MW from a technology that does not yet exist

Corporation Google has signed an agreement with the American startup Commonwealth Fusion Systems to purchase 200 MW of energy fusion from ARC, the world’s first commercial fusion power plant. 

ARC power plant to be built in the district Chesterfield, Virginia, could become the world’s first commercial power plant to run on thermonuclear synthesis. У Commonwealth Fusion Systems expects the plant to start producing energy in early 2030. 

Once fully commissioned, the plant should produce 400 MW of clean energy with zero carbon emissions. Under the terms of the agreement, Google will receive 200 MW. In addition, the corporation is participating in an undisclosed funding round. 

Unlike conventional nuclear power plants, fusion does not lead to carbon emissions and produces significantly less waste. Energy is generated by the fusion of light atomic nuclei at extremely high temperatures, about 100 million °C. The resulting plasma allows the nuclei to fuse, releasing enormous amounts of energy. 

In 2021 Commonwealth Fusion Systems — a startup from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has raised $1.8 billion with the support of Google. The startup is currently building demonstration reactor called Sparc near Boston. Construction is due to be completed in 2026. After that, the construction of the world’s first commercial fusion power plant near Richmond, Virginia, is to begin. 

Microsoft became the first tech company to sign a fusion energy agreement in 2023, agreeing with Helion to receive energy from a fusion power plant that is expected to start operating in 2028.

Google, like other cloud and AI companies, is looking for reliable and clean energy sources. Demand for new data centers, driven by artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and digital infrastructure, is growing rapidly. Experts predict that energy consumption by data centers could double by 2030. 

According to the head of the advanced energy department at Google Michael Terrell, the corporation considers investments in energy in the short, medium and long term. In the short term, the focus is on alternative sources — solar, wind, and batteries. In the medium term, the emphasis is on generating energy from small modular reactors and geothermal sources. The long-term perspective envisages energy generation from thermonuclear power plants. 

Source: Interesting Engineering