VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Nov. 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, General Fusion announced its new United States base of operations in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, as the company advances plans for a first-of-a-kind commercial pilot plant. A global leader in fusion energy technology development, the company is rapidly expanding its collaboration with national laboratories, universities, and the U.S. government. This expansion will create up to 50 highly technical jobs to advance the company’s commercialization of fusion energy – a carbon-free power source necessary to meet the growing global energy demand while fighting climate change.
General Fusion is the first private fusion company to establish an office in Tennessee. The office is strategically located near the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) – the largest multi-purpose science and energy laboratory in the United States and home to the U.S. ITER program. Here, General Fusion will collaborate with world-leading fusion scientists and tap into key engineering talent. The Oak Ridge office will also provide a robust ecosystem of suppliers and services essential to making commercial fusion energy a reality.
“Commercializing technologies like fusion energy has enormous potential for energy development and economic growth, and I can think of nowhere better suited for General Fusion to pursue this exciting technology than Oak Ridge, Tennessee,” said U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty. “East Tennessee continues to be at the forefront for the development of the technologies of tomorrow.”
“Tennessee welcomes companies from all over the world because of our pro-business policies and skilled workforce,” said U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn. “I am pleased the city of Oak Ridge and Oak Ridge National Lab continue to serve as a central hub for the many businesses that contribute to our state’s thriving economy.”
“General Fusion is leading the way to create a future where fusion energy is not only possible, but a plentiful source of clean, carbon-free energy,” said U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann. “Once open, their U.S. headquarters will create dozens of highly technical and highly paid jobs that will impact and grow Oak Ridge’s local economy. Congratulations to General Fusion, the City of Oak Ridge, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory on this exciting and important expansion.”
“General Fusion has been a valued research partner as we advance plasma diagnostics to establish fusion energy as a viable source of abundant clean energy,” said Thomas Zacharia, Director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. “We are thrilled to welcome its U.S. headquarters to the Oak Ridge Corridor. The arrival of this world leader in fusion energy underscores the value of the private-public collaborations that drive technology development and deployment here.”
“We are harnessing the immense breadth of fusion resources located here in Oak Ridge to help us transform the world’s energy systems for a low carbon future,” said Christofer Mowry, CEO, General Fusion. “Our expansion into Tennessee embodies the spirit of the recent National Academies of Sciences report, which calls on government and private industry to invest and collaborate now to deploy fusion power in the 2035-2040 timeframe. Oak Ridge is one of the primary centers for energy innovation in the U.S. With this announcement, we intend to make it a cornerstone of General Fusion’s global network of partners preparing fusion to be the clean energy technology of choice for the world.”
Public-private partnerships drive innovation in the fusion sector, and in Oak Ridge, General Fusion will benefit from increased opportunities for scientific collaboration with ORNL. The two organizations recently partnered to study plasma diagnostics to improve the quality of the plasma used to create fusion, work that will advance the design and operation of General Fusion's commercial machine. General Fusion is developing a practical and economical approach to Magnetized Target Fusion (MTF) to produce fusion energy. The company's MTF technology puts it on the fastest path to commercialization, and on course to power homes, businesses, and industry with clean fusion energy by the early 2030s.
About General Fusion
General Fusion is pursuing the fastest and most practical path to commercial fusion energy and is based in Vancouver, Canada, with locations in Oak Ridge, U.S., and London, U.K. The company was established in 2002 and is funded by a global syndicate of leading energy venture capital firms, industry leaders, and technology pioneers. Learn more at www.generalfusion.com.
Media contact:
Grace Peach
Director, Marketing and Communications
General Fusion
Email: media@generalfusion.com
Phone: 1-866-904-0995
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