U.S. Energy Secretary Tours Fusion Facilities at General Atomics

Visit highlights GA’s role in advancing U.S. fusion programs for energy and national security

SAN DIEGO — U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, Under Secretary for Science Darío Gil, and ARPA-E Director Conner Prochaska visited General Atomics (GA) this week to tour its fusion research and engineering facilities, highlighting work underway in San Diego to support U.S. national security and advance commercial fusion energy.

During the visit, Wright, Gil, and Prochaska engaged with scientists and engineers at the DIII-D National Fusion Facility, a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) user facility and the largest magnetic fusion research facility in the United States, who are working to close critical science and technology gaps for future fusion power plants. The delegation also toured General Atomics’ inertial confinement fusion target fabrication and manufacturing spaces, offering a firsthand look at the complementary capabilities supporting both the nation’s fusion research enterprise and critical national security missions.

“We were honored to welcome Secretary Wright, Under Secretary Gil, and ARPA-E Director Prochaska to showcase the incredible innovation at GA,” said Anantha Krishnan, senior vice president of General Atomics Energy Group. “Achieving commercial fusion energy is one of the most important scientific and engineering challenges of our time, and we are deeply appreciative of DOE’s continued support of DIII-D and other enabling capabilities at GA in pursuit of this goal.”

“Fusion, my original dream, what powers the stars and why I went to MIT, represents one of the most promising energy breakthroughs of our time, and facilities like DIII-D are helping turn decades of research into movement toward commercial power,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright. “The work underway at General Atomics is a strong example of how you drive fusion forward, bringing together world-class science and engineering to move long-standing scientific ambition to something we can realistically deliver, and it’s happening here in the United States.”

Operated by GA on behalf of DOE, DIII-D is a cornerstone of the nation’s fusion innovation ecosystem. DIII-D’s experts include co-located teams from the fusion industry, national laboratories, and universities. With the support of the DOE and Congress, GA has kept the facility and its program at the forefront of fusion through continual technology improvements, enabling investigations that produce breakthroughs in fusion development.

“GA’s capabilities help maintain U.S. leadership in fusion by advancing the science, engineering and collaborations needed to make fusion a commercial reality,” said Wayne Solomon, vice president of magnetic fusion energy for General Atomics. “DIII-D plays a critical role in bringing together scientists and engineers to solve some of fusion energy’s most complex challenges and stands as a strong example of public-private partnership. Its work to pioneer machine learning and digital twin technologies, train the workforce, and strengthen the supply chain is essential to accelerating fusion deployment and supporting a growing fusion industry.”

The visit highlighted GA’s longstanding role in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) research supporting the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) Stockpile Stewardship Program, which advances ICF and high-energy-density physics research at national laboratories across the country. GA supplies critical components, world-leading diagnostics, and expertise in target fabrication and metrology in support of the NNSA’s stockpile stewardship program.

“Inertial fusion depends on precision at every step, and that is where General Atomics has built deep expertise over many years,” said Mike Farrell, vice president of inertial fusion technologies at General Atomics. “Through close collaboration with the NNSA and national laboratories across the country, this work supports critical national security missions today while helping expand what is possible for the future of fusion science and technology.”

Fusion is the same process that powers the sun and stars. Instead of splitting atoms, as in conventional nuclear power, fusion combines light atomic nuclei to release enormous amounts of energy. Scientists believe it could one day provide abundant, carbon-free energy for humanity.

“Fusion presents an opportunity for one of the greatest energy breakthroughs of our time,” said Krishnan. “The United States has the talent, innovation and capability to lead this effort globally and, in doing so, can help realize a powerful source of abundant, carbon-free energy for generations to come.”

For more information about General Atomics’ fusion research and technologies, visit GA.com/energy-systems-and-products. To learn more about the work underway at the DIII-D National Fusion Facility and how to participate, visit d3dfusion.org

About General Atomics

Since the dawn of the atomic age, General Atomics innovations have advanced the state of the art across the full spectrum of science and technology from nuclear energy and defense to medicine and high-performance computing. Behind a talented global team of scientists, engineers, and professionals, GA’s unique experience and capabilities continue to deliver safe, sustainable, economical, and innovative solutions to meet growing global demands.

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Contacts

Media Contact:
Andrew James
Communications Lead
General Atomics Energy Group
andrew.james@ga.com

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