Nuclear energy

1. The next big thing will be tiny

   The new investor appetite for SMRs — which are about a third of the size of traditional reactors, generating some 300 megawatts — is the cutting edge of the atomic revival. These mini reactors promise to come in under the cost of a typical plant, while using new (and theoretically safer) kinds of fuel.

   More than 80 SMR projects are in development around the world — with 13 of these based in the UK and EU, according to Bloomberg — and corporate investors are showing interest. Swedish energy giant Vattenfall recently invested €1m in Fermi Energy, a company looking to bring SMRs to Estonia. Rolls-Royce is developing an SMR in the UK to power its factories.

2. Ageing plants and Europe’s political tug of war

   The sunset of traditional reactors provides urgency on nuclear power. Of the 109 nuclear plants in Europe, 63 are 30-40 years old; 32 are older than 40. Efforts to extend the life of these facilities differ across countries but include more physical inspections, repairing worn-out parts and fresh approvals from national authorities.

   Most of these plants had initial commissions of 30 years, but the race to stabilise energy prices in the wake of inflation pressure and the Russian invasion of Ukraine comes at an extreme safety risk.

   European governments are at odds on nuclear. With 56 plants generating over 60% of the country’s electricity, France is Europe’s undisputed nuclear leader, while the UK aims to bolster its nuclear prowess with a recently announced $145m budget to advance nuclear projects. Germany changed course on the energy source after 2011, and there are reservations too in Belgium, Portugal, Denmark, Italy and Austria

3. Almost too hot to handle

   Can anyone actually create viable fusion? The eventual goal for the energy source — the reaction that takes place in the sun and in hydrogen bombs — is that it can be harnessed on-demand, to generate power. The only problem? It’s incredibly difficult to control beyond a few seconds.

   Splitting atoms — fission — can take place at room temperature, but to get fusion, two main ingredients, deuterium and tritium, are lashed with extreme heat until they jam together to form helium, unleashing tremendous energy.

   For the Joint European Torus fusion machine in Oxford to run at full tilt, for example, it needs to become the hottest place in the solar system — even hotter than the core of the sun. The sweet spot for fusion is between 150-200m degrees Celsius. Go too hot and the ingredients will not fuse.

   The first positive-energy fusion event took place at the California-based National Ignition Facility in late 2022 (scientists repeated the trick in July 2023). Until then, fusion has always required more energy than it has produced, but this experiment released more energy than was pumped in.

4. Keeping up with the US

   There are some 35 startups developing fusion concepts in the world — and the majority are in the US. How has that part of the world been able to forge ahead?

   Paris-based Renaissance Fusion founder Francesco Volpe lists two reasons: scientists are more entrepreneurial in the US, he believes, and he also chalks down the relative lack of public funding for nuclear as "a frustration" that spurred the market. Previously good levels of public funding for fusion in Europe may have provided the opposite incentive, he argued earlier this year, though the dynamic is surely shifting now, with American officials stepping up both funding and attempts to lure clean energy businesses across the Atlantic.

   Despite the US fusion lead, Volpe chose France as a base for his company because, he explains, it hosts the global ITER mega-fusion project — the continent’s biggest effort to demonstrate fusion. He also likes the government's pro-tech policies.

Who early stage startups are up against