Seattle-area Helion quietly moves goalpost on fusion
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Building toward fusion. Photo: Mike Kane/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Helion Energy, one of the companies that has helped turn the Seattle area into a global hub for fusion energy, is softening its timeline for reaching full commercial operation.
Why it matters: The Everett-based company, which just opened a new Seattle office, has promised to produce fusion electricity years ahead of competitors.
The big picture: Fusion has long been considered a holy grail of clean energy, promising abundant, zero-carbon power — but after decades of research, no one has yet demonstrated commercially viable fusion power at scale.
The latest: Helion this year removed a prediction from its website that Orion, its first commercial power plant, will begin producing electricity by 2028.
- A Helion webpage now says the plant will "begin initial operations in 2028." It does not define initial operations.
- "We will not, in no universe, have 50 megawatts hit full operation in 2028," Helion public affairs director Jackie Siebens said this summer at the FusionX conference in Boston.
- Full power won't come before 2029 or 2030, she acknowledged. Helion declined to comment.
What we're watching: Helion's contract with Microsoft requires Orion to at least "be connected to the grid and begin operations by the end of 2028," Siebens said.
- It's unclear whether connecting to the grid in 2028 also means supplying electricity. Microsoft declined to comment.
Two academic papers published this year questioned fundamental assumptions behind Helion's approach, including whether its reactor could produce enough fusion energy to overcome energy losses.
The other side: Helion says its design can recover electrical energy more efficiently than historical estimates suggest.
The bottom line: Helion is still pursuing one of fusion's most ambitious timelines — but the milestones that distinguished it from competitors have shifted.
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