US-based fusion energy company Helion has received the regulatory clearances to build the world’s first fusion energy power plant. The company has received a Radioactive Materials License (RML) and a Radioactive Air Emissions License (RAEL) from the Washington Department of Health (DOH), clearing the way to begin construction of the generator building at the power plant site. 

As the world looks for newer ways to meet it energy demands without emitting carbon, fusion energy seems to be the most likely option. Using the chemical reaction that occurs on the Sun, fusion energy can potentially generate large amounts of energy from simpler atoms like hydrogen and its isotopes. 

Unlike its counterpart, nuclear fission, fusion energy does not produce large amounts of radioactive waste that need to be stored safely. Moreover, unlike renewables like wind and solar, fusion energy plants can work on demand, meeting energy requirements as they arise, without the investments required in energy storage too. 

Commercializing nuclear fusion

For all its benefits, nuclear fusion is still not a commercially available technology because the fusion reactors have not been able to generate more energy than they consume. Washington-state-based Helion Energy, though, is confident that it can achieve this fairly soon. 

While it has not yet published any peer-reviewed papers demonstrating how its fusion reactor works, the company is proceeding to build a fusion reactor that it will deploy commercially. It also has an agreement in place with Microsoft to supply 50 MW of power to a data center from its fusion reactor by 2028. 

The facility dubbed Orion is under construction in Malaga, Washington state and recently became the first such facility in the world to secure regulatory licenses to construct the nuclear plant. So far, the assembly and office building of the plant were completed but the recent grant of licenses from the DOH allows Helion to begin constructing the reactor as well. 

Why is NRC not involved? 

As a nuclear energy company, Helion should ideally be seeking approval from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). However, the NRC regulates nuclear fusion under the byproduct material framework, putting it in the same category for approvals as particle accelerators and hospitals, instead of nuclear reactors. 

This is not just a distinction made by the NRC but one also ratified by the US Congress in the ADVANCE Act of 2024, and it shows that nuclear fusion has a very different safety profile from fission and hence its path to deployment is also different. 

The issuance of the RML and RAEL licenses by the Washington DOH is a major milestone for Helion as it confirms that it has facilities, personnel, and safety programs that meet the safety standards for a fusion facility at the Malaga site. 

“We are extremely proud to be granted these licenses from the Washington DOH, making us the first company in the world with the regulatory approvals in place for fusion power plant operations,” said David Kirtley, CEO of Helion Energy, in a press release shared with Interesting Engineering.

“We have a long history of working with the DOH to license our previous fusion activities. Today’s announcement represents the rigor of that work and opens the door for practical, commercial, safe fusion power.”

In addition to the approvals needed to build its reactor, Helion has also secured a transmission interconnection agreement with Chelan County Public Utility District that will enable energy generated from its fusion power plant to be supplied to the grid, a global first as well. 

The question now is whether Helion will be able to meet its deadline to power Microsoft’s data center by 2028 from its fusion power plant.

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