Fusion Energy Realizes Century's American Dominance

Key Chapter Title List

1. About This Committee
2. About the Preliminary Report
3. Executive Summary
4. Fusion Energy: Laying the Foundation for American Leadership in the 21st Century
5. The Global Fusion Race
6. Achieving Fusion Energy
7. Appendix: Introduction to Fusion Basics

Document Introduction

This report was co-authored by the Co-chairs and Members of the U.S. Expanding Fusion Energy Commission and released in February 2025. Its core issue is how the United States can take urgent and coordinated national action to maintain and consolidate its energy and technological leadership in the 21st century, in the face of rapid global competitor development in the fusion energy sector led by China. The report elevates the commercialization of nuclear fusion energy to a strategic level of national security, arguing that it is not only crucial for energy independence and economic growth but also a key determinant of the future geopolitical landscape, artificial intelligence (AI) development, defense capabilities, and the setting of global technological standards.

The report first outlines the strategic value of fusion energy, pointing out that as a dispatchable, carbon-free baseload energy source, it has the potential to revolutionize the global energy landscape. Through a comparative analysis of the fusion development trends in the U.S. and China, the report reveals potential risks and shortcomings in the U.S. regarding strategy, supply chains, infrastructure, and public-private funding during the transition from experimental science to commercialization. Although the U.S. maintains a lead in private investment, scientific breakthroughs (such as the ignition experiment at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory), and the startup ecosystem, China is rapidly catching up and may achieve overtaking through large-scale national investment, infrastructure construction (such as the CRAFT campus and the CFETR project), and control over critical material supply chains (such as tungsten).

To address this challenge, the report proposes a clear national fusion goal: to initiate construction of the world's first commercial fusion power plant within this decade. To achieve this goal, the report constructs an action framework consisting of three pillars. First, formally declare fusion energy a national security priority, establish a national goal through a Presidential Executive Order, and develop a 90-day action plan. Second, establish a Fusion Lead within the U.S. Department of Energy with budgetary and personnel authority, responsible for coordinating supply chain security (including mapping, incentives, and cybersecurity), optimizing public-private partnerships, and clearing regulatory obstacles (involving Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing, expedited environmental review, and grid interconnection). Third, make a strategic one-time investment of $10 billion to support critical R&D facilities, commercialization projects, and pilot plant demonstrations, while continuing to invest in basic science and talent development.

The report's analysis is based on committee working group meetings, expert briefings, and extensive consultations with government agencies (such as the Department of Energy, National Laboratories), private companies, and academia. Its conclusion emphasizes that the United States must take decisive action immediately to translate its scientific advantage into commercial and geopolitical advantage; otherwise, it risks losing its leading position in a key technology that will determine the balance of power in the coming century.