For STEP to be a success, it needs a huge dose of national ambition blended with international talent and tenacity. We are aiming to not only create a true fusion energy plant prototype, but to stimulate the emerging fusion energy industry and secure a strong UK lead in that. A prototype is not enough – we need to set the conditions for commercial fusion beyond that to provide a critical new energy source that will work alongside renewables and other technologies to achieve and maintain the low carbon economy of the future. The path to commercially viable fusion energy is untrodden. We are spawning an entirely new global industry and are proud the UK is leading the way. As a programme created by the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), STEP, or Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production, will become a global hub for a wide range of engineering, technological and scientific expertise, leading to massive economic opportunities for the community in which it’s located, the wider region and the UK as a whole. STEP aims to deliver a fully integrated fusion energy plant prototype capable of supplying electricity to the grid, showing the way for subsequent commercial plants that can supply our ever-growing electricity demands and also supply high grade heat to help de-carbonise complex industrial processes.
The Engineer 14th June 2022 read more »