Google has agreed to purchase 200 megawatts of power from Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), marking the first direct power purchase agreement between a customer and a fusion energy company. CFS, an MIT spin-off, is developing a fusion power facility in Chesterfield County, Virginia, with the aim of delivering power to the grid in the early 2030s.
In addition to the power purchase agreement, Google is increasing its investment in CFS, signalling confidence in fusion energy's potential. Google's previous investment in CFS was in 2021, when Google participated in a funding round that put $1.8 billion into the company. The company is currently working on its SPARC demonstration machine in Massachusetts, which uses high-temperature superconductor magnets to control plasma. SPARC is expected to produce its first plasma in 2026 and net fusion energy shortly after. The subsequent ARC project is expected to deliver power to the grid in the early 2030s. The ARC plant will provide the electrical grid with about 400 megawatts of clean, zero-carbon power.
This agreement underscores the growing demand for clean energy to power data centres and AI technologies. Fusion, which forces light atoms together to release energy, holds the promise of abundant, carbon-free power, though significant engineering challenges remain.
