The U.S. Department of Energy and Kyoto Fusioneering Establish Landmark Partnership to Accelerate Commercial Fusion Power
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Kyoto Fusioneering (KF) have announced a landmark strategic partnership aimed at delivering critical fusion infrastructure and advancing collaborative research and development to significantly reduce the technological and commercialization risks facing fusion energy. The agreement marks a major step forward in global efforts to make fusion power a practical, reliable, and scalable source of clean energy, while also strengthening international cooperation between the United States and Japan.
At the heart of the partnership is a new public-private collaboration between Kyoto Fusioneering and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). This alliance leverages the complementary strengths of both organizations—KF’s fusion engineering and technology development expertise and ORNL’s world-class scientific capabilities—to establish next-generation fusion test facilities and accelerate the readiness of key fusion technologies. Together, the partners aim to create a new model for allied cooperation that aligns public research infrastructure with private-sector innovation to hasten the deployment of commercial fusion power.
Fusion energy, often described as the “holy grail” of clean energy, has the potential to provide abundant, carbon-free electricity using fuel derived from hydrogen isotopes. However, significant scientific and engineering challenges remain before fusion power plants can be commercially viable. One of the most critical hurdles is the development of reliable fusion breeding blanket systems—complex components that surround the fusion plasma and enable the production of tritium, a key fuel required to sustain fusion reactions. Addressing this challenge is a central focus of the new DOE–Kyoto Fusioneering partnership.
Under the agreement, KF and ORNL will initiate joint research and development activities dedicated to advancing fusion breeding blanket technologies. These efforts will include laying the groundwork for the development of UNITY-3, a world-leading breeding blanket test facility to be constructed at ORNL. UNITY-3 is envisioned as a next-generation, flexible fusion nuclear platform capable of validating tritium breeding blanket performance using prototypic neutron environments and realistic component geometries. Such validation is widely regarded as a crucial step toward the realization of commercially deployable fusion power plants.
Work on UNITY-3 will begin immediately, reflecting both the urgency of the technical challenge and the growing market demand for credible fusion infrastructure. The initiative has already received strong industry endorsement, with support from ten partners, including seven leading U.S. fusion development programs. This broad backing underscores the importance of shared testing facilities in reducing risk, avoiding duplication of effort, and accelerating progress across the fusion ecosystem.
In parallel with the ORNL collaboration, Kyoto Fusioneering and DOE will work closely with Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) to leverage KF’s existing and planned UNITY facilities outside the United States. UNITY-1, located in Japan, and UNITY-2, based in Canada, will play critical roles in non-nuclear blanket testing, thermal cycle validation, and tritium fuel cycle technology development. These activities form an integral part of DOE’s Tritium Blanket Development Platform (TBDP) under the Fusion Nuclear Science mission.
By integrating these facilities into a coordinated testing and development strategy, the partnership creates a comprehensive, globally distributed infrastructure for fusion technology maturation. Each facility within the UNITY™ program is designed to address specific technical challenges, collectively providing a logical progression of increasingly realistic and demanding test environments. This approach enables systematic advancement of technology readiness levels (TRLs) for tritium breeding blankets and associated fuel cycle systems—key prerequisites for commercial fusion deployment.
The collaboration formally unites DOE’s Tritium Blanket Development Platform with Kyoto Fusioneering’s Unique Integrated Testing Facility (UNITY™) program under a shared Build-Innovate-Grow strategy. This framework is designed to close critical gaps identified in the DOE Office of Science’s Fusion Science & Technology Roadmap. By aligning public and private investments around clearly defined milestones, the strategy ensures that scientific discovery, engineering development, and industrial scaling proceed in parallel rather than in isolation.
Beyond its technical significance, the partnership represents a pioneering model for coordinated public-private investment and international collaboration in advanced energy technologies. Driven by market-led commercial imperatives and enabled by world-leading scientific research, the agreement merges Kyoto Fusioneering’s engineering excellence with the deep scientific pedigree of the U.S. national laboratory system. This synergy is expected to strengthen the fusion industrial base in both countries and position the U.S.-Japan alliance at the forefront of global fusion development.
The strategic implications of the agreement extend well beyond fusion energy alone. By pooling resources, expertise, and infrastructure, the partnership reinforces the broader economic and technological relationship between the United States and Japan. It also signals a shared commitment to addressing global energy and climate challenges through trusted alliances and long-term investment in transformative technologies.
“Fusion energy represents a transformational opportunity for our energy future,” said Dr. Darío Gil, DOE Under Secretary for Science. “This partnership reflects DOE’s commitment to working with trusted allies and the private sector to build critical infrastructure, strengthen American competitiveness, and deliver real, measurable progress toward making fusion energy a reality.”
Dr. Gil emphasized that collaboration with international partners and private innovators is essential to overcoming the remaining barriers to fusion commercialization. By aligning national laboratory capabilities with industry-driven development, DOE aims to ensure that the United States remains a global leader in fusion science while accelerating the transition from experimental systems to power-producing plants.
Kyoto Fusioneering leadership echoed this sentiment, highlighting the long history of scientific and technological cooperation between the two nations. “The United States and Japan share a long history of close cooperation in science and technology,” said Dr. Satoshi Konishi, Co-Founder and CEO of Kyoto Fusioneering. “Through this strategic partnership with DOE, we are proud to contribute KF and Japan’s fusion technology and engineering expertise to advance fusion nuclear science, reduce risk for fusion power plants, and support the long-term success of the U.S. and Japanese fusion ecosystems.”
As global interest in fusion energy continues to grow, the DOE–Kyoto Fusioneering partnership stands out as a concrete step toward turning long-held scientific promise into commercial reality. By focusing on critical infrastructure, coordinated testing, and shared investment, the collaboration aims to accelerate timelines, reduce uncertainty, and bring fusion power closer to the grid. If successful, it could help unlock a new era of clean, reliable, and virtually limitless energy for decades to come.
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