Thea Energy raises $20m to advance fusion technology

Proceeds from the financing will support the construction and operation of the company’s proprietary superconducting planar coil magnet array systems, the design and simulation of Eos, Thea Energy’s large-scale integrated neutron source stellarator system, and continued team growth.

In a statement, said Brian Berzin, co-founder and CEO of Princeton, New Jersey headquartered Thea Energy said: “We will continue to advance our fusion technology to address the growing energy demands of humanity by providing a clean, safe, and abundant source of fusion power.

“Company progress on core intellectual property, magnet systems, and the Eos stellarator has proven the determination and know-how of our team. In our next phase, we will be constructing our planar coil magnet systems at scale while further expanding our team of fusion and commercialisation experts.”

Concurrent with the close of the Series A financing, Prelude Ventures managing director Mark Cupta will join Thea Energy’s board of directors.

“In meeting with the Thea Energy team, it became clear that they are not only leaders in the fields of plasma physics and fusion systems engineering, but also highly passionate about creating a sustainable future,” said Cupta. “I am thrilled to join as the company is well positioned to commercialise fusion energy. Thea Energy’s first-generation fusion system, Eos, will show a clear path to deploying fusion power plants and its development is not contingent on further scientific breakthroughs.”

Other participants in the funding round included 11.2 Capital, Anglo American, Hitachi Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, Mercator Partners, Orion Industrial Ventures, and Starlight Ventures.

Wolfgang Seibold, partner and chief financial officer at Hitachi Ventures, said: “Fusion energy will play a critical part on the path to a zero-emission future. Thea Energy’s distinctive, simplified magnet system design results in a practical approach to fusion that we are eager to advance together with the team.”

Thea Energy’s stellarator uses magnets to confine plasma in the shape of a doughnut. The company said its technology enables systems to be simpler and more practical by eliminating the intricate 3D magnet coils required in all other proposed stellarator architectures. Rather than utilising large, twisty magnets with impractical engineering tolerances, Thea Energy’s architecture is said to create the precise magnetic fields needed for fusion with arrays of flat programable magnets. By transferring complexity to control systems, the company can take advantage of the recent advances in computing technology. This simplification is critical to reducing costs, scaling, and long-term system maintenance.