Google Makes Big Deal to Buy Fusion Power
Google has inked its first big deal in the fusion energy area, saying yes to buy 200 megawatts of power from Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS). The power will come from the first ARC fusion reactor, now being built in Chesterfield County, Virginia. They expect to start sending power in the early 2030s.
The Deal and the Tech
This deal adds to Google's first money put into CFS in 2021. It lets the tech giant buy power from the company's future fusion plants. CFS uses high heat magnets to make clean, carbon-free power that can work all day and night.
SPARC The Test Step
The real test for the ARC reactor comes from its earlier version, the SPARC reactor. Based at CFS in Massachusetts, SPARC is a small, strong-magnet reactor made to show that this tech can make clean power on a smaller scale.
What Fusion Energy Could Do
Once it's working, the ARC reactor plans to make up to 400 MW, like today's gas power plants. Bob Mumgaard, boss and co-maker of CFS, thinks this is "the first of many deals" that will put fusion energy as a key part of our future energy world.