Japan’s FAST Project Office proudly announces the launch of the FAST (Fusion by Advanced Superconducting Tokamak) project, which aims to achieve fusion-based power generation by the end of the 2030s.
FAST aims to generate and sustain a plasma of deuterium-tritium (D-T) reactions, demonstrating an integrated fusion energy system that combines energy conversion including electricity generation and fuel technologies. The project will employ a tokamak configuration, chosen for its well-established data and scalability. FAST will address remaining technical challenges enroute to commercial fusion power plants. It brings together top researchers from prominent institutions, along with industrial and international partners from Japan, the UK, the US, and Canada.
Key institutions involved include University of Tokyo, Tohoku University, Institute of Science (Tokyo), Nagoya University, Kyoto University, Kyushu University, Kyoto Fusioneering Ltd, Tokamak Energy (UK), Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (US), General Atomics, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories and Fusion Fuel Cycles (Canada).
Moving forward, a conceptual design team will be organised, composed of plasma researchers and power plant engineering researchers. The preliminary design is expected to be completed in 2025. A thorough evaluation of the internal and external environment, including technology, funding, regulation and policy, will be conducted at the transition to detailed design, where a decision will be made on the feasibility of execution.
In parallel, led by Kyoto Fusioneering, FAST will accelerate technology development in key systems, engineering design, site selection, and regulatory efforts in collaboration with industrial partners such as Mitsui & Co, Mitsui Fudosan Co, Mitsubishi Corporation, Marubeni Corporation, Fujikura Ltd, KAJIMA Corporation, and Furukawa Electric Co.
While previous or near-term planned fusion experiments have achieved, or will soon achieve, medium-pulse plasma discharges to de-risk the plasma confinement and control for a Fusion Pilot Plant (FFP), critical obstacles remain in harnessing the energy transport for sustained external use, establishing the tritium fuel cycle, including tritium breeding, and integrating these advances into a configuration that represents a commercially viable fusion power plant.
As yet, no experimental device worldwide is capable of creating the necessary fusion environment – the fusion neutron flux and relevant thermal loads – to bridge the gap between current advanced plasma experiments and the desired end goal of practical energy extraction.
FAST aims to fill these gaps by providing a comprehensive and unique platform to develop technologies applicable to practical fusion power plants worldwide, including demonstration devices (DEMO) and FPPs.
FAST is a private-sector-led industry-academia collaboration, developed in cooperation with fusion experts from Japan and abroad. A researcher-led team will be organised to handle design, planning, and operation, advancing the project in collaboration with both domestic and international researchers specialising in plasma physics and fusion reactor engineering.
