The UK Government has committed £20m ($26m) to establish ‘Starmaker One’, a private fusion investment fund aimed at supporting growth and commercialisation in the fusion energy sector.
According to a government press release, the initiative is designed to help fusion businesses and startups scale their operations, driving the development of clean energy technologies.
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The funding comes from the government’s Research and Development budget for the 2024/2025 financial year.
It is expected to strengthen the UK’s position as a global leader in fusion energy while creating high-skilled jobs.
Starmaker One is a limited partnership, representing the first early-stage fusion energy venture capital fund outside the US and the first of its kind to include government investment.
The fund has the potential to raise between £100m and £150m for investment in fusion-related technologies and innovations across the sector.
East X Ventures, the venture capital arm of East X, will manage the fund, with the government entitled to a share of any returns.
UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: “This government is taking back control of Britain’s energy by driving for clean homegrown power through our Plan for Change.
“Fusion has the potential to provide us with energy security, whilst attracting the best technologies to our shores and training up the next generation of British scientists and engineers.
“We are backing both nuclear and fusion power, and today, we take a step forward in growing this exciting industry.”
Fusion energy has long been seen as a potential solution to the world’s growing energy demands.
Many UK fusion companies have cited a lack of access to capital as a major barrier to scaling up their businesses. This funding is set to address that gap, boosting sector development.
The funding will help small fusion companies develop their workforce, with a focus on training in critical fields such as physics, engineering, and chemistry.
In addition, the fund will support the growth of fusion-related technologies in sectors such as AI, robotics, energy storage, and healthcare.
Fusion energy already supports thousands of jobs in the UK, particularly in regions such as Nottinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and South Yorkshire, according to the press release.
As the technology advances, the sector is expected to create many more high-skilled roles, further embedding fusion as a key component of the UK’s energy future. These job opportunities will likely continue to grow with increased investment.
Fusion is also a significant sector in the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor, with research showing that for every £1 invested in fusion, the economy benefits by nearly £4.
Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor Champion Lord Vallance said: “Fusion energy is a technology with enormous potential and an industry in which the UK is already well established.
“This investment will help to unlock the funding the fusion industry needs to grow, which will boost regions across the UK such as Nottinghamshire and South Yorkshire, and in Culham in Oxfordshire, the epicentre of UK fusion.”
The UK’s Government funding builds on a previous £410m commitment made in January to support fusion research. This commitment is part of a broader international collaboration to develop fusion technology and unlock its potential for economic growth.
