Japan plans to launch pilot fusion power plant next decade

Government seeks to secure economic security through next-gen energy source

A technician inspects equipment at California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory for researching fusion energy. The world is racing to advance tech for the energy source. (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory)

RYUTO IMAO and KENTO FUKUI

May 20, 2025 03:49 JST

TOKYO -- The Japanese government hopes to conduct Japan's first field test of a power plant generating electricity from nuclear fusion in the 2030s, Nikkei has learned.

The country's Fusion Energy Innovation Strategy, which was first released in 2023, will be revised shortly. Japan aims to be the first in the world to conduct such a pilot, according to the upcoming amendment to the text.