Backing nuclear fusion in New Zealand is a geopolitical necessity, Rod Badcock, of OpenStar Technologies, says.
The Government announced on Feb 4 that it would lend up to $35 million to OpenStar to help build a new facility for the company's next-level fusion machine, known as Tahi.
The funding is from the Regional Development Fund rather than the science budget.
Badcock, Openstar’s vice president of engineering, said Government help was important because private investors tended not to invest in physical facilities. The $35m would ensure the R&D and capability stayed in NZ.
“It came about through a huge effort from OpenStar, talking with just about every party in the country, politicians and people in the various ministries, and laying out the case.
NZ would have first-mover advantages in developing technology to shield against the high-temperature plasma, and the best way to absorb high-energy neutrons
“I don’t think there’s a single party in the country who doesn’t understand the importance of actually retaining the [operation] in NZ and not hitting that critical stage where it moves overseas.”
NZ would either have a seat at the table or accept what it was given when energy supply was a geopolitical issue.
“GDP is predominantly determined by the cost of water and the cost of electricity because that is what any export product is formed from,” Badcock said.
“Not having sovereign capability in these uncertain times means we are at risk of large government bodies from anywhere which can exert pressure and undue influence on what this country does.”
The energy battle was being fought between East and West and within the Western blocs, he said.
A boost for private investor confidence
OpenStar chief product officer and co-founder Thomas Berry said the company was still majority-backed by venture capital. However, the Government infrastructure loan was critical to investor confidence.
“What investors want to see is that they’re not going at it alone. Fusion is an expensive sector.
“We’re cheap within fusion, but we’re still talking about the order of $1 billion to build one of these power plants in the future, and private capital doesn’t want to have to bridge that gap, let alone bridge the gap to building 10 of these a year,” he said.
“They know they’re not having to foot the bill all the way through to us being a really boring power plant producer. That’s not what VC investments are for; it’s for taking risk and doing high-risk ventures.”
Badcock said the location of Tahi was commercially confidential at present. They were still deciding whether to purchase an existing facility or build one from scratch.
If OpenStar purchased building space, it could move in within 6 months, or within 18 months if it built something new.
“These are very rapid timelines.”
Ever hotter
OpenStar’s prototype in Wellington’s Ngauranga Gorge uses a levitating dipole inside a vacuum chamber, known as Junior, to generate a powerful magnetic field. The system makes that magnetic field far easier to contain than in most fusion reactor designs. It is also easier and faster to reconfigure than many other fusion projects.
Even after Tahi is up and running, Junior will remain operational to carry out further research.
The existing facilities have carried out numerous high-temperature plasma tests since the first in 2024.
Badcock said Tahi would operate at even higher temperatures and be capable of hydrogen fusion.
“We’ve proven the technology, and it has a major advantage over what the rest of the world has been doing. Tahi is about showing that plasma physics gets us to hot enough … in record time.”
Tahi would have a levitating dipole 6.5 metres in diameter, not much larger than Junior’s 6m dipole. But it will operate at a magnetic field strength of 20 Tesla, compared with Junior’s current 6 Tesla, although Junior would soon be boosted to 12 Tesla, Badcock said
The current OpenStar facility employs more than 70 people. When Tahi opened, the company’s head count would grow to about 200, he said.
The next machine, after Tahi, already named Māui, is intended to generate significant net energy from the fusion process. After that, OpenStar plans to develop a fourth-generation reactor for commercial electricity generation.
Asked if Māui could also be built in NZ, Badcock said there was no reason it couldn’t be.