The Spark - Der Technologiepreis: Diese deutsche Firma will Europas erstes Fusionskraftwerk bauen

Proxima Fusion, a Munich-based fusion energy startup, has been named the runner-up in "The Spark – The Technology Prize" for its ambitious goal of building Europe's first commercial fusion power plant. The company, founded three years ago, has quickly risen to become the first fusion energy unicorn in Europe, securing over €400 million in a July funding round and currently valued at over €2 billion.

Major investors in Proxima Fusion include the London-based XTX Markets' XTX Ventures, the risk capital provider East X Ventures, German energy conglomerate RWE, and venture capital firms UVC Partners and Cherry Ventures. The company aims to develop fusion reactors based on stellarators, a type of fusion reactor that uses a magnetic field to contain plasma.

Success in the fusion race could lead to clean, carbon-free energy production without nuclear waste. The German government has pledged to invest up to €9 billion in fusion technology over the next few years, with the first fusion power plant set to be built in Germany. Proxima Fusion's efforts have recently been bolstered by a visit to Japan by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Proxima's CEO Francesco Sciortino, where the company signed an agreement with Japanese tech giant Fujikura to build production capacities for high-temperature superconducting (HTS) materials in Lower Saxony.