Key insights from China’s nuclear fusion forum: BofA

Investing.com -- China’s latest nuclear fusion forum suggests the technology is gaining unprecedented policy momentum, with Bank of America research analyst Gary Tsang saying speakers emphasised that fusion is now “framed as a domain of strategic competition, driven by energy security, decarbonization, and accelerating power demand.”

According to BofA, major economies, including the U.S., China, Russia and the EU, are targeting “scaled commercialization of fusion in the 2030s.”

A major focus of the event was said to be the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), which BofA describes as a “seven-party project… targeting 500 MW fusion power, gain Q≥10, and 500-second burns.”

The programme, now in full installation, has a revised baseline of “first research operations around 2034” and high-Q burning experiments around 2039.

Tsang notes that since 2024, “the schedule and cost have stabilized,” with speakers highlighting lessons around underestimated integration complexity and slow consensus governance.

China showcased rapid execution across its fusion portfolio. Since 2008, the country has launched “270 projects spanning frontier physics, magnets, power supplies, cryogenics, long-pulse operation, tritium systems, and device upgrades.”

BofA explained that flagship EAST and HL-3 tokamaks reported “world-class advances” including preparation for deuterium-tritium operation around 2027, with the “broader goal of fusion power output by 2030.” A national fusion industry alliance established in 2023 is said to have already grown to “200+ members.”

The bank added that speakers flagged three core technical hurdles: achieving steady-state self-heating plasmas, developing “radiation-tolerant materials,” and ensuring tritium self-sufficiency.

Still, China’s policy signals remain “constructive,” with fusion designated a “future energy” priority in the 15th Five-Year Plan.

Near-term efforts are said to focus on stronger magnets, longer pulses, tritium-loop closure and heat-handling innovations, alongside parallel inertial-fusion tracks such as pulsed-power drivers and hybrid fusion-fission systems.

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