Updated: May 24, 2021
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Q&A: Devens fusion firm strives to achieve $1B world-altering breakthrough
Photo | Bryce Vicmark
Bob Mumgaard, the CEO of Commonwealth Fusion Systems
Over the next year and a half, Commonwealth Fusion Systems is building a $300-million, 47-acre headquarters in Devens, in its $1-billion, long-term effort to make fusion – an emission-free technology with no waste products – the default energy source on Earth, using its SPARC fusion machine. CEO Bob Mumgaard spoke with WBJ about the effort thus far.
What are you building in Devens exactly?
We are creating a new headquarters and building a manufacturing facility, but we are also building the first net energy-producing fusion machine. That is a new thing in human history. No one has ever done that before.
Why build in Devens?
Building this type of facility has a lot of restrictions, such as the ground for the foundation and the proximity to our neighbors. We needed access to the talent pool in the Boston area, as well to our facility in Cambridge.
We searched all over for the right location, and Devens really came quickly to the top of the list, for its proximity to Boston and the talent corridor. Massachusetts is really a leader in clean energy, and Devens is certainly part of that. Plus, Devens is easy to get to, has a lot of space, and gives us room to grow.
The MassDevelopment staff in Devens has been very, very helpful, and the neighbors have been very welcoming.
How did you help your new neighbors understand the tech?
This is a new industry, and it is nothing like nuclear power as it exists today. Luckily, people do know the difference with fusion, which is great, and they understand this could be the power of the future.
While nothing like the SPARC has been built yet, people can tour the facilities with the technology that has come before it. So, we had members of our community tour the facility in Cambridge we came out of.
How does SPARC work?
Fusion is the same process that powers the sun and all the stars. It is how the universe gets 99.99% of its energy, so this isn’t new energy. We have built many fusion devices around the world that produce fusion in a laboratory setting, however no one has yet to build a fusion device that generates more power than it takes to get the process started, the requirement for a power plant. This is the goal of SPARC.
Simply, SPARC works by enabling fusion which happens when forms of hydrogen fuse and create helium and a ton of energy. SPARC will be proof of concept that will pave the way for the first fusion power plan that can be used to make electricity. It takes a very, very small amount of fuel to get the process started.
SPARC is an important next step, as it will be the first machine to show that fusion can work as a power source. The scientific community has been working on this for decades, and everyone is very excited, which is why organizations like MIT are involved. We plan to grow fusion power into a new industry, similar to solar and wind, with the goal of creating a new carbon-free power source to mitigate climate change.
How does the Devens facility fit in that plan?
Devens will be the place for the fusion demonstration. Devens is where we get it all figured out, but we will build the power plant elsewhere.
The Devens facility will be ready in fall 2022. We will use that facility to manufacture the pieces for SPARC, and then in the future, we will manufacture the pieces for the power plant. In late 2024, we will start to see the SPARC machine being assembled, and we will turn it on in 2025. Hopefully, in 2025, we will have the machine creating more power than it takes in.
That is a faster timeline than any programs out there.
As the technology is being proven, the first power plant would be sited, turned on, and hooked up to the electric grid by the early 2030s.
Can you keep to that tight timeline?
It is hard to predict those schedules, but right now, we are right where we need to be.
Do you have enough funding to get to 2030?
Our technology is actually useful for other things, so we do use that to generate some revenue.
Yet, it will take more than $1 billion to do the plan we’ve laid out, and we’ve been really fortunate to have investors who are supportive of the company and have invested $250 million so far. That all comes from a whole class of investors who range from venture capital funds funded by people like Bill Gates, to large oil and gas companies, to pension funds around the world.
As you prove the viability of fusion, you will then get the rest of the funding you need?
That is how it is supposed to work, and we are on that path.
Right now, we are very excited to have a new home and do this new ambitious thing. It will be a historic thing to do.
This interview was conducted and edited for length and clarity by WBJ Editor Brad Kane.
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