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The startup Pacific Fusion has begun construction of a pilot facility in New Mexico aimed at achieving what is known as “net facility gain” by 2030—that is, producing as much energy as the facility itself consumes. The company intends to use the project’s results to reach a commercial plant in the mid-2030s.
Inertia Enterprises has developed a method for manufacturing nuclear fusion fuel pellets in two to three hours, compared with a week or more at the NIF facility. This reduction could help lower the cost of a commercial plant and the inventory of tritium fuel required to operate it.