Fusion energy industry gets £2.5bn funding boost

More than £2.5bn of investment into fusion energy over the next five years has been announced as part of the government's Spending Review.

The funding will be split between Oxfordshire, Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said.

It said the money would "cement" Oxfordshire's role as a "world-leading hub" for the technology, while funds would also be invested into plans to build a fusion power plant in West Burton, Nottinghamshire.

The announcement came as part of Wednesday's Spending Review by Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

Nuclear fusion is the same energy process that powers the stars, with scientists saying it has the potential of virtually unlimited supplies of low-carbon, low-radiation energy.

It works by heating and forcing tiny particles together to make a heavier one - releasing large amounts of clean energy.

The announcement included funding for research into fusion fuels, advanced materials and facilities in Oxfordshire.

Culham, in the county, was previously home to a nuclear fusion reactor and is now one of the bases of the UK Atomic Energy Agency (UKAEA).

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: "Fusion has the potential to provide us with an abundant, clean power source and deliver energy security, whilst attracting the best technologies to our shores and training up the next generation of British scientists and engineers.

"Today's record funding will provide investment and economic growth in Oxfordshire through our Plan for Change, delivering on net zero and creating the clean energy of the future."

Deputy CEO of the UKAEA Tim Bestwick said the "record investment" in fusion was something the agency "very much welcomes".

"Both Culham and West Burton, together with UKAEA's other sites in Cumbria and in South Yorkshire, have important roles to play within the UK fusion programme," he added.

A breakdown of how the investment will be allocated has not yet been shared by the government.

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