According to the company, the project could see the pilot plant situated at retired TVA fossil fuel power plants, repurposing their infrastructure, or being deployed at greenfield sites.
Project Infinity: The agreement, announced on February 11, expands on Project Infinity, which was launched by Type One Energy, TVA, and the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory in early 2024, with support from the state of Tennessee.
Originally centered on deploying Type One Energy’s Infinity One stellarator prototype in TVA’s Bull Run power plant, Project Infinity now encompasses a broader engagement toward commercialization of fusion energy, Type One Energy said. The two companies will collaborate on Infinity Two fusion power plant siting studies, environmental reviews, and licensing, as well as development of project plans and financing from various sources. Type One Energy is to support TVA in its evaluation and review of the project.
Supply chain: According to Type One Energy, the scope of the cooperative agreement is linked to a separate arrangement between the parties to access the capabilities of TVA’s Power Service Shops (PSS) in Muscle Shoals, Ala. The PSS relationship enables Type One Energy to continue shaping its supply chain for stellarator fusion power plants, with PSS supporting modular manufacturing and assembly of Infinity Two. The arrangement would also enable TVA to benefit from the subsequent scaling of fusion energy on a global basis, following the successful deployment of Infinity Two, according to Type One Energy.
Type One Energy also said that Project Infinity includes a commitment to workforce development, cultivating the skills and knowledge to assemble, operate, and maintain fusion stellarators. This skills building and knowledge transfer will be enabled by the unique, power plant–relevant, 24/7 performance capability of the Infinity One prototype, the company said.
Licensing agreement: Type One Energy also announced on February 11 that it has signed an agreement with Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) that gives Type One Energy an exclusive license to use CFS’s high-temperature superconducting (HTS) cable technology in the development of its own proprietary stellarator fusion magnets. The agreement also gives Type One Energy the benefit of the experience CFS has in manufacturing the powerful HTS fusion magnets.
According to Type One Energy, the licensing and manufacturing agreement with CFS will complement its cooperative agreement with TVA.
