New podcast episode looks at the momentum behind fusion energy and the challenges ahead

The IEA today released a new Everything Energy podcast episode focused on the prospects for generating energy supplies from nuclear fusion.

Since the mid-20th century, scientists and engineers around the world have been working to harness the potential of nuclear fusion. Driven by the knowledge that success could revolutionise the energy system, they have pursued fusion’s tantalising potential to provide abundant around-the-clock electricity with minimal fuel inputs, no direct emissions and very little radioactive waste.

Recently, momentum behind the sector has been building. Government-led research programmes have achieved a series of technological milestones, and investment from the private sector has surged. Together, these developments have supported growing interest in the sector – although significant challenges still need to be overcome to make fusion power plants technically and economically feasible.

The new episode – available now on Apple Podcasts and Spotify – explores where fusion energy stands today and where it could be headed. It features interviews with four experts from across the industry: Alain Bécoulet, ITER’s Chief Scientist; Simon Bennett, an IEA analyst focused on energy innovation; Jennifer Ganten, the Chief Global Affairs Officer at Commonwealth Fusion Systems; and David Maisonnier, Chair of the IEA’s Fusion Power Coordinating Committee. They explain how fusion works, discuss the sector’s evolution, and outline the remaining questions that need to be answered before a power plant running on fusion energy is connected to the grid.

The IEA’s Everything Energy podcast offers insights and perspectives on leading global energy issues. In other recent episodes, IEA experts have unpacked a number of topics linked to the energy crisis stemming from the war in the Middle East – including the impact on diesel prices and access to cooking fuel, how the crisis is reshaping energy investment trends, and what the energy world looked like on the eve of the Strait of Hormuz shock.

A new Everything Energy miniseries also explores energy innovations that have shaped history. The first episode looked at the silicon solar cell and how its development has underpinned today’s solar power boom. The second explored advances in drilling and their energy sector impacts, and the third examined the invention of the air conditioner – and ongoing efforts to improve it.

All past episodes are available here.