Latest news with #HelionEnergy
Geek Wire
6 days ago
- Business
- Geek Wire
Sparks fly: Seattle-area fusion startup rivals debate path to commercial power
Sustainability: News about the rapidly growing climate tech sector and other areas of innovation to protect our planet. SEE MORE A fusion energy panel at the Technology Alliance's Seattle Investor Summit+Showcase, from left: Anthony Pancotti from Helion Energy, Brian Riordan from Avalanche Energy, Ben Levitt from Zap Energy and moderator Lisa Stiffler from GeekWire. (GeekWire Photo / Todd Bishop) The conversation got a little heated at a Seattle-area conference Tuesday when three companies vying to commercialize fusion power took the stage. The Pacific Northwest is a hub for fusion innovation, and Washington is home to Helion Energy, Zap Energy and Avalanche Energy, among others. It's a small and generally collegial cluster, but representatives from the trio of companies took some swipes at each other at the Technology Alliance event as they laid out their ambitions for commercial success. With more than $1 billion from investors, Helion has set the most aggressive timelines for deploying its technology. The Everett company aims to build and operate what could be the world's first fusion power plant — a 50-megawatt facility whose electricity is earmarked for Microsoft and is supposed to come online in 2028. 'We're focused on producing electricity and breaking down all of the barriers to make that happen in this decade,' said Anthony Pancotti, co-founder and head of R&D for Helion. Ben Levitt, the head of R&D for Zap, said the field is progressing and fusion is definitely coming — but on stage at the Seattle Investor Summit+Showcase, he questioned Helion's target. 'I don't see a commercial application in the next few years happening,' Levitt said. 'There is a lot of complicated science and engineering still to be discovered and to be applied.' Fusion, which powers the sun and the stars, requires super hot, super high-pressure conditions sustained over time. The goal for the companies is to engineer a technology that generates and captures more energy from smashing atoms together than is needed to produce the reactions — a target known as 'Q greater than 1.' Later this decade and into the next, 'you'll see small scale, not necessarily profitable fusion,' Levitt predicted. 'But you will see fusion demonstrations with greater output energy than input.' Helion is currently testing its Polaris reactor, a seventh-generation prototype that will be the same size as the planned commercial reactor. The sector is attracting interest from tech companies desperate for clean energy for their power-hungry data centers. Zap, which is located in Everett a short distance from Helion, hasn't set an expected date for the commercialization of its technology. The company is experimenting with its FuZE-Q fusion device and has built its Century system, a prototype including components beyond the reactor that will be needed to generate power for the grid. For Brian Riordan, co-founder and chief operating officer of Seattle's Avalanche, the question comes down to economics. 'Ultimately, I don't think the first [company] to 'Q greater than 1' is going to matter,' he said. 'What's going to matter is who can make it economical. The first car company in the U.S. was like Duryea Power Wagon Corp. or something, and nobody remembers because they didn't make it cheap enough.' (Riordan was close — it was Duryea Motor Wagon Company.) Avalanche is aiming for Q equals 1, a lower bar to clear, within about two years, Riordan said, but that would be in a prototype, not a commercial device. In 2022, Avalanche won a Pentagon contract from the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) to develop a fusion device called the Orbitron for space propulsion and power generation. Its reactor system is among the compact — smaller than one of the event's conference tables, Riordan said. While the debate over timing and targets will be settled in coming years, the three panelists agreed that the most important thing is someone cracks the fusion challenge and unlocks this potentially vast source of clean energy. 'Good luck to everybody,' Levitt said. 'If fusion wins, we're all winners. We want to be the first, of course. But you know, any winner is a winner for humanity.'
Geek Wire
23-05-2025
- Business
- Geek Wire
Groundbreaking fusion: Helion eyes rural Wash. for world's first plant despite unproven tech
The proposed site for Helion Energy's first fusion plant, located in Malaga, Wash., on property that includes the Rock Island Dam. (Helion Photo) Nearly a century after construction began on Rock Island Dam — the first hydroelectric power plant on the Columbia River — a new and vastly different energy technology could take shape at the same site. Helion Energy, a company developing fusion devices to harness the power released by smashing atoms together, hopes to break ground this summer for its facility, located near the Rock Island Dam in Washington's Chelan County. If Helion is able to flip the switch on a successful fusion plant on its planned timeline, it would likely be the first in the world to do so. The company has been meeting for more than a year with residents living near the site, packing the gymnasium at a nearby elementary school and taking questions at a chamber of commerce visitor center and wine tasting room. It's working with Chelan County's community development department to secure initial building permits, and is negotiating a lease with the county's public utility to connect to the grid. 'We've sat down with tribal councils and tribal leaders, business leaders, community leaders, environmental nonprofits, community foundations, really the whole spectrum,' said Tom Bugert, who leads Helion's state public affairs. Helion, which is based just north of Seattle in Everett, Wash., has spent the past 12 years on R&D and building prototypes in preparation for this deployment. It has raised more than $1 billion from investors including Sam Altman, OpenAI's CEO and co-founder, as well as SoftBank, Lightspeed Venture Partners, a university endowment and others. The company is in the No. 2 spot on the GeekWire 200, a ranking of Pacific Northwest startups. The planned 50 megawatt reactor is intended to serve Microsoft, which has built multiple data centers in Washington and is on the hunt for new clean energy sources to power the computers that support artificial intelligence. Two years ago, Helion and Microsoft signed an historic deal in which the cloud company agreed to buy power from the plant starting in 2028. An ambitious timeline The glow from a super hot plasma generated inside Polaris, Helion's seventh fusion prototype device. (Helion Photo) Five years is a stunningly short timeline to permit, build and flip the switch on a first-of-a-kind plant of that size. And it's all the more remarkable given that despite decades of effort, no one has been able to generate more energy from fusion than is required to force the atoms together. Not academic researchers, not another company, nobody. At the same time that Helion is working toward the planned facility, it's also still testing its Polaris reactor, a seventh-generation prototype built in Everett that will be the same size as the commercial reactor. The expectation is that any technical difficulties will be overcome with the prototype and Polaris will produce net electricity, demonstrating the viability of Helion's commercial product. Again, this would be a monumental, whopper of a scientific accomplishment. Yet Bugert is optimistic it's within reach. 'We're still on track,' he said, 'for demonstrating electricity from fusion as soon as this year.' And Helion is not the sole company chasing fusion dreams in Washington state. Zap Energy and Avalanche Energy are also in pursuit of energy's 'Holy Grail' for essentially limitless power. Zap's path Zap Energy's Century system, which it's using to develop and test power-producing technologies. (Zap Photo) Zap, which is also based in Everett, is working on a more compact reactor design. The team is experimenting with its FuZE-Q fusion device and has built its Century system, a prototype that allows for research into the many components beyond the reactor that will be needed to create power for the grid. In 2023, the company was selected as one of eight commercial ventures to participate in the U.S. Department of Energy's Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program, an initiative to advance the sector. Zap hit one of the milestones earlier this year, using the Century platform to produce and sustain a super-heated plasma for three hours inside of a liquid metal environment. By the end of the year, the company plans to submit a proposal for a pilot project to DOE, which if targets are hit, will provide up to $5 million to support the effort. Zap has been exploring locations for a pilot facility, including a site in Centralia, Wash., where TransAlta is shutting down its operations of a coal-fired power plant. 'The Centralia site is indeed promising,' said Ryan Umstattd, vice president of product and partnerships at Zap. 'But at this stage, we still want to keep our options option.' The company is also hoping that the U.S. Department of Defense will begin more actively supporting fusion power as a fuel for space operations and other deployments, and as a national security strategy. Interest from the department could give the sector a boost and catalyze additional private support, said Umstattd. Zap has raised more than $330 million from investors, and holds the No. 19 spot on the GeekWire 200. Seattle's Avalanche has already been pursuing defense-related fusion technology. In 2022, it won a Pentagon contract from the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) to develop a fusion device called the Orbitron for space propulsion and power generation. DIU aims to have Orbitron fusion devices used in flight demonstrations by late 2027. Last month the company announced plans to open a first-of-its-kind facility for commercial-scale testing of radioactive fusion technologies in Eastern Washington. Focus on 2028 Helion CEO David Kirtley, left, with Gov. Jay Inslee at Helion's Everett facility in July 2024. (GeekWire Photo / Lisa Stiffler) Of the three, Helion is out in front with its planned commercial-scale fusion plant. The company, which has about 525 employees and contractors, will need a construction workforce of about 130 to build the facility near the town of Malaga. Helion executives have previously said the reactor would be housed in a 30,000-square-foot building. Washington state leaders have been paving the regulatory way to fusion deployment, recently approving House Bill 1018, a law that creates an additional path to permitting the projects, and previously designating fusion as a clean technology. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission two years ago determined it would regulate fusion as it does particle accelerators — which represents a much less costly and onerous process than nuclear fission facilities must navigate. The initial permits currently being sought by Helion are for office and assembly buildings. An application for a conditional use permit to build the generator space will come later. Assuming the reactor performs as planned, operations will require about 10 people per shift, with three shifts a day. The big challenge, Bugert said, is 'how do we get fusion power on the grid by the end of 2028, and that's the goal that's rallying everyone in the company.' RELATED:
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
World's first nuclear fusion power plant in US close to historic ignition test
Helion Energy, an Everett-based fusion energy company, has announced plans to construct the world's first fusion power plant in Malaga, Washington. The company is working towards developing a 50-megawatt fusion power plant on land owned by the Chelan Public Utility District (PUD) near Rock Island Dam, along the Chelan County side of the Columbia River. While the site has not been officially finalized yet, discussions are progressing, and the company plans to further engage with the community for this pioneering project. The announcement was made during a joint press conference at the Confluence Technology Center in Wenatchee. The public event featured Helion Communications Director Jessie Barton, Chelan PUD's Kirk Hudson, Chelan County Community Development Director Deanna Walter, and Jim Kuntz of the Chelan Douglas Regional Port Authority. They discussed their respective agencies' roles in exploring the potential for carbon-free energy sources in Chelan County. 'We're looking at developing a 50-megawatt fusion power plant on PUD-owned land, near Rock Island Dam, on the Chelan side of the Columbia River,' said Barton. 'Now, this isn't an official site selection at this point, but we are at the point where we're ready to bring in more community members and have a larger conversation about this potential project.' A community event is planned for March 11 at Mission View Elementary School, where additional details about the project will be shared. The company has set an ambitious timeline, aiming to begin construction this summer if the permitting process proceeds without delays, to generate fusion energy by 2028. From Chelan PUD's perspective, this project is a key component of a broader strategy to meet future energy demands and expand beyond hydropower, which has traditionally been the region's primary energy source. 'We have all of our eggs in one basket with hydropower, which has served us very well, but the future is going to be much different than the past has been,' said Chelan PUD's Kirk Hudson. Initially, the fusion energy produced will support a purchase agreement with Microsoft, with long-term plans to make this clean energy accessible to local customers. The PUD remains optimistic about the project's growth and success, aiming for its benefits to extend to residents of Chelan County and the broader north-central Washington region. Formal discussions regarding agreements with Helion, including potential lease terms, are expected once the company is ready to begin construction. Helion Energy anticipates hiring approximately 130 workers during the initial construction phase, with around 30 staff needed for ongoing plant operations once the facility is complete. In May 2023, Helion Energy announced a groundbreaking deal with Microsoft, marking the world's first commercial agreement for fusion energy. Under this agreement, Helion aims to provide Microsoft with electricity generated from its fusion power plant by 2028. The deal underscores confidence in Helion's advanced fusion technology and its potential to deliver a reliable, carbon-free energy source. This partnership aligns with Microsoft's sustainability goals, aiming to secure clean energy for its operations. Helion's progress has been further bolstered by significant funding, including a major investment in January 2025, to accelerate the development and deployment of fusion energy technology. With the planned fusion power plant in Malaga, Washington, Helion is taking significant strides toward making fusion energy a reality, reinforcing its commitment to revolutionizing the energy landscape by 2028.
