Germany’s Marvel Fusion has raised €50m as it looks to outcompete startup rivals racing to develop commercial nuclear fusion technology in Europe.
The Series B extension sees the startup become the region’s best funded nuclear fusion player, taking total funds raised to €385m. EQT Ventures, Siemens Energy and European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund participated in the round.
The fresh funds will support Marvel as it looks to transition from research and development into industrial deployment, the startup said in a statement.
Fusion recreates a similar process that occurs in the sun’s core, and promises an almost unlimited fuel source in hydrogen, with no greenhouse gas byproduct and a lower chance of meltdowns than traditional fission — the process nuclear plants currently use.
But experts say predict fusion is still decades away from powering the grid. There are still big technical challenges to overcome, including heating hydrogen isotopes to more than 100m degrees celsius and safely containing the plasma that forms as a result.
European startups are racing to capitalise on world-leading fusion research in the region, in spite of a huge capital deficit when compared to startups in the sector in the US.
Some of the biggest US raises include Pacific Fusion’s $900m in October and Commonwealth Fusion Systems’ $1.8bn in 2021. By comparison, the best-funded fusion startup in Europe after Marvel is UK-based Tokamak Energy, which has raised $335m.
In February, Marvel’s compatriot Proxima Fusion claimed it has made a “breakthrough” in nuclear fusion, unveiling what it said is the world’s first blueprint for a commercial power plant, using a technology known as magnetic confinement.
Marvel is taking another approach called inertial confinement, which involves firing lasers at a tiny capsule of hydrogen fuel, triggering an implosion.
“The round gives us the financial and operational backing for executing the required milestones towards building the world’s first fusion prototype,” said founder and CEO Moritz von der Linden.
Marvel aims to build a prototype facility by 2032 and a commercial fusion power plant by 2036.
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