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42 min ago 2 min read
Californian fusion energy company TAE Technologies (TAE) has partnered with natural resource and lunar development company Black Moon Energy (BME) under an agreement covering the prospective supply and commercial development of helium-3 fuel for fusion power.
Under the agreement, BMEC would supply helium-3 fuel to TAE for its nuclear fusion operations. Separately, BME is pursuing a longer-term strategy to establish a helium-3 supply chain from the lunar surface.
TAE is preparing for construction of its first fusion power plant, called Da Vinci, which is expected to generate 50 MWe of electricity.
Operations are targeted for 2031, with TAE saying the facility will build the foundation for future commercial-scale fusion facilities to scale to 350-500 MWe.
TAE says its technology also gives it flexibility to select between different fuel cycles based on long-term fuel-market conditions, providing an alternative to the deuterium-tritium cycle used by many other fusion machines.
Helium-3 is obtained from the natural decay of tritium and is extremely rare on Earth but is believed to be more abundant in the Moon’s regolith.
The agreement comes as BME advances plans to explore the potential for producing helium-3 from lunar resources.
In January, BME plans for a robotic mission to the Moon to collect data and carry out key activities needed to reduce risks associated with future helium-3 production at the Moon’s surface.
The initial year-long lunar expedition is expected to provide the first dataset to support decisions on helium-3 production operations.
David Warden, CEO at BME, said, “Developing a future supply chain for fusion fuels is a critical component of bringing fusion power to market… we are helping establish the commercial framework needed to support next-generation energy systems.”
Helium-3 is being studied as a potential fuel for fusion energy, but it also has applications in quantum computing, neutron detection, ultra-low-temperature cryogenics, and advanced nuclear research.
In March, BME to supply the US Department of Energy’s Isotope Program (DOE IP) with helium-3.
