“Working with Oxford Sigma brings invaluable expertise to the development of the NOVATRON. Their knowledge in fusion materials and reactor design is instrumental in tackling key challenges as we advance our concept towards industrial readiness.” Josefin Sjöbohm, Project Leader, Novatron Fusion Group.

Novatron, in turn, will leverage these resources to validate its proprietary confinement solution and complete the conceptual design of its next-generation reactor. This collaboration underscores both organizations’ commitment to achieving scalable and efficient fusion energy.

“Joining forces with Novatron Fusion enables us to leverage our fusion materials manufacturing capabilities to their fullest potential. Together, we are committed to overcoming the challenges of fusion commercialisation and delivering clean, reliable energy to the world.” Dr Alasdair Morrison, CTO, Oxford Sigma

“A partnership with Oxford Sigma will accelerate our development of core technologies for the NOVATRON fusion reactor concept. Fusion power is the holy grail for mankind, supplying clean, safe, and abundant energy to industry and society. This can only be achieved in collaborations, combining advanced knowledge, skills, and perseverance.” – Peter Roos, CEO, Novatron Fusion Group

About Oxford Sigma Oxford Sigma is an advanced materials fusion technology company with a vision to tackle energy security and climate change by accelerating the commercialisation of fusion energy. Our mission is to deliver materials technology, materials solutions, and fusion design services. Oxford Sigma aims to produce advanced materials technologies, agnostic to fusion approach, for the materials ecosystem. Our fusion core materials are engineered to enable longer term operations for fusion pilot plants, with the aim of roll out to the first-of-a-kind commercial power stations. Oxford Sigma is internationally recognised as a key fusion materials and technological leader and is headquartered in Oxford, UK. Get in touch at info@oxfordsigma.com About Novatron Fusion Group Novatron Fusion Group AB is a Swedish company headquartered in Stockholm. Founded in 2019, the company strives to establish fusion energy and the NOVATRON concept as the preferred large-scale dispatchable source of clean, safe, reliable and virtually limitless fusion power. Inspired by Swedish inventor and entrepreneur Jan Jäderberg’s original idea, it is now being developed by world-leading physicists, engineers and academics at a test facility, housed by KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden. The NOVATRON technology remains the world’s only stable mirror-machine concept, and aims to streamline the fusion energy process while reducing capital and operational cost of future fusion reactors through a series of USPs. Financial backers include Climentum Capital, EIT InnoEnergy, Granitor, Industrifonden, KTH Holding and Santander InnoEnergy Climate Fund. For more information, please visit www.novatronfusion.com and www.linkedin.com/company/novatron-fusion-power

The scientific publication is found in the Fusion Engineering and Design journal. It provides the first stage proof of concept of the team’s optimisation. The publication is available here and cited as:

Anderton, M. D., et al. “Novel high temperature tritium blanket designs for confined spaces in spherical tokamak fusion reactors.” Fusion Engineering and Design 210 (2025): 114732.

The research evaluates two novel high-temperature concepts for the inboard breeder blanket design, using confined spaces typical of spherical tokamaks. Key findings include:

• A tungsten-rhenium-hafnium-carbide lithium-based design, which demonstrated the highest tritium breeding ratio (TBR) in the study. Optimised for shielding and thermal requirements, this design achieved a global TBR of 0.135 in 3D neutronics calculations using a configuration of W-24.5Re-2HfC (wt%), lithium enriched to 90% in Li-6, a thin layer of beryllium titanate, and tungsten pentaboride (W2B5) as shielding material.
• A silicon carbide and lead-lithium concept, which was also investigated as an alternative breeding configuration, by comparison achieved a global TBR of 0.048.

While the results suggest that the local TBR of these designs remains well below 1 (the minimum required TBR for self-sufficiency), especially for the lead-lithium concept, the fractional contribution they provide in boosting tritium breeding could support development of next-step practical solutions to achieving tritium self-sufficiency—a critical challenge for commercial fusion energy.

Mark Anderton, Senior Engineer at Oxford Sigma, and lead author of the paper, commented: “The study highlights the importance of innovative materials in addressing a key challenge involving the coupling of tritium breeding and radiation shielding. This collaboration has enabled us to explore new design spaces for the central column of spherical tokamaks, demonstrating how advanced materials can help reduce barriers to fusion commercialisation.”

Dr. Richard Pearson, Chief Innovator at Kyoto Fusioneering, and a co-author on the paper, added: “This research represents the essence of what Kyoto Fusioneering stands for: tackling challenging problems with a research-driven, yet application-focused approach. By working collaboratively with Oxford Sigma and UKAEA, we’ve combined complementary expertise to address a unique issue in fusion plant design, pushing known boundaries, and gaining insights that may one day lead to delivery of new technologies that will enable new avenues for fusion energy.”

Dr. Simon Kirk, Vessel and In-Vessel Systems Design Integration Lead at UKIFS, added: “This project is a great example of fusion organisations working together with a spirit of openness and meant the technical expertise from the different organisations could be combined to address the difficult challenge on centre column tritium breeding in spherical tokamaks.”

Figure 1: Change in local tritium breeding ratio and neutron flux for a variety of shielding materials and enrichment levels.

About Kyoto Fusioneering
Kyoto Fusioneering, established in 2019, is a privately funded technology startup with facilities in Tokyo and Kyoto (Japan), Reading (UK), Karlsruhe (Germany) and Seattle (USA). The company specializes in developing advanced technologies for commercial fusion power plants, such as gyrotron systems, tritium fuel cycle technologies, and breeding blankets for tritium production and power generation. Working collaboratively with public and private fusion developers across the globe, Kyoto Fusioneering’s mission is to make fusion energy the ultimate, sustainable solution for humanity’s energy needs. Explore more about KF’s vision for the future of energy at www.kyotofusioneering.com/en/ or by contacting media@kyotofusioneering.com.

About Oxford Sigma
Oxford Sigma tackles energy security and climate change by accelerating the commercialisation of fusion energy. Oxford Sigma’s mission is to deliver materials technology, materials solutions, and fusion design services in order to accelerate the commercialisation of fusion energy. Oxford Sigma is internationally recognised as a key fusion materials and technological leader within the market. Get in touch at info@oxfordsigma.com.

About STEP/ UKIFS
STEP (Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production) is a major technology and infrastructure programme that will demonstrate net energy from fusion, fuel self-sufficiency and a route to plant maintenance. UKAEA is STEP’s fusion partner and will work alongside STEP’s industry partners – one in engineering and one in construction – expected to be announced at the end of 2025/early 2026. The STEP programme is being delivered by UK Industrial Fusion Solutions Ltd (UKIFS) a wholly owned subsidiary of UKAEA Group. UKIFS will lead STEP’s integrated delivery team to design and build the prototype plant at West Burton site in Nottinghamshire, targeting first operations in 2040.

Fusion materials and technology design and development are core to Oxford Sigma’s ecosystem model. The United States offers a growing market for the materials technology we produce for fusion energy using our made-in-Britain supply chain and collaboration with UK-based enterprises and small businesses. As Oxford Sigma has been working with American partners since our early days as a company, the newly-established American subsidiary is in a unique position to increase UK fusion exports by fostering and expanding these partnerships.

The fusion energy sector is thriving in the United States, bolstered by recent government initiatives and funding. In June 2024, the White House announced its Bold Decadal Vision for Commercial Fusion Energy, following the bipartisan Fusion Energy Act passed by Congress earlier in the year, aimed at streamlining the path to commercial fusion.

Oxford Sigma’s expansion to the United States aligns with the longstanding collaborative relationship between the UK and USA in fusion energy. America is one of the United Kingdom’s strategic fusion partners, according to a major UK-USA partnership announced in November 2023. By expanding operations in the United States, Oxford Sigma aims to independently align and contribute to the fostering of this relationship.

In addition to expanding market opportunities and fostering the UK-USA fusion special relationship, Oxford Sigma’s expansion to the United States supports our involvement in developing the fusion power plant construction code through the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), which meets on a quarterly basis across the United States and in Washington, D.C. Oxford Sigma CEO, Dr Thomas Davis serves as chair of ASME Boiler & Pressure Vessel (BPV) Code Section III Division 4 “Fusion Energy Devices.” Division 4 develops rules for the construction of fusion-energy-related components such as vacuum vessel, cryostat and superconductor structures, and materials qualification.

“Oxford Sigma’s expansion into the US aligns perfectly with our mission to lead in the field of fusion energy and materials innovation. We are committed to leveraging our expertise and resources, working alongside our established partners and new alliances to accelerate the development of sustainable fusion energy in America.”

Dr Thomas Davis, CEO, Oxford Sigma

Oxford Sigma Inc can be contacted at PO Box 100036, 3118 Washington Blvd, Arlington, VA, 22210, USA.

Figure: Co-founders Jonathan Musgrove, COO (left), and Dr Thomas Davis, CEO in Washington DC.

Interested in working with Oxford Sigma in the United States or learning more about our work to accelerate fusion energy? Contact us at info@oxfordsigma.com.

The 20-week technology access programme will support Oxford Sigma as the company prepares to embrace quantum technology, and consider how quantum computing could solve some of our industrial challenges. With tailored support from industry partners, a team of experts at Digital Catapult as well as access to cutting-edge quantum technology, the support provided to participating companies is designed to achieve their defined use-cases and ensure sustainable business growth.

QTAP is part of a wider Innovate UK (Industry Strategy Challenge Fund) funded project called ‘Quantum Data Centre of the Future’ which aims to embed a quantum computer within a classical data centre to explore real-world access to a quantum computer. The programme’s industry partners include ORCA Computing, Riverlane, BT, KETS and PQ Shield.

Each participating company operates within a growing business sector, bringing unique and sector specific challenges that could one day be solved by leveraging quantum technologies. Their participation in the Quantum Technology Access Programme underscores the need to understand the potential business value of quantum technology, and the strategic importance of exploring new commercial use cases.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology estimates that by 2033, all businesses within key relevant sectors of the UK will be aware of the potential of quantum technologies and 75% businesses will have taken steps to prepare for the arrival of quantum computing. The cohort of the programme represents a remarkable mix of early adopters of quantum technology and their commitment to explore and leverage their knowledge in the field. To maximise the programme’s benefits for participating companies, each company has the opportunity to test their use cases at a partner’s data centre.

Oxford Sigma has identified quantum computing as an industry where technology overlaps with fusion. This is particularly relevant in the development of enabling materials for fusion energy, with which the materials team at Oxford Sigma engages on a daily basis.

“The launch of the Quantum Technology Access Programme is a milestone moment for our work with quantum technologies. The industry titans within the chosen cohort of companies really exemplifies the exciting prospect of the future industrial adoption of  quantum technologies. This programme is a great opportunity for them to experiment with quantum computers and bring valuable learnings from the programme back to their company leaders. We look forward to working with our partners from ORCA Computing, Riverlane and PQ Shield on showing just some of the potential of quantum computing and providing the companies with first class expertise.”

~ Jeremy Silver, CEO, Digital Catapult

“Oxford Sigma is at the forefront of embracing Quantum Technology in our quest for producing sustainable fusion materials, computational models, and fusion technology to the growing fusion industry. QTAP provides our team an insight, expertise, and development to ensure that our technology can utilise Quantum Technology to accelerate our product development.”

~ Dr Thomas P. Davis, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer

About Oxford Sigma 
Oxford Sigma is a Fusion Technology company with a vision to tackle energy security and climate change by accelerating the commercialisation of fusion energy. Our mission is to deliver materials technology, materials solutions, and fusion design services. Oxford Sigma aims to produce advanced materials technologies, agnostic to fusion approach, for the materials ecosystem. Our fusion core materials are engineered to enable longer term operations for fusion pilot plants, with the aim of roll out to the first-of-a-kind commercial power stations. Oxford Sigma is internationally recognised as a key fusion materials and technological leader. The company operates in the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, Canada, and Japan, with offices in the UK and USA. Our roots and headquarters are in Oxford, UK.

Get in touch at info@oxfordsigma.com 

About Digital Catapult 
Digital Catapult is the UK authority on advanced digital technology. Bringing together industry leaders, researchers and startups, we accelerate digital technology adoption to benefit the UK – breaking down barriers, de-risking innovation, opening up markets and responsibly shaping the products, services and experiences of the future. Digital Catapult is part of the Catapult Network that supports businesses in transforming great ideas into valuable products and services. We are a network of world-leading technology and innovation centres established by Innovate UK. Visit digicatapult.org.uk for more information.

Fusion energy requires the use of tungsten for its high melting temperature, low plasma sputtering yield, and high thermal conductivity as part of the plasma-facing walls of a power station. In addition, tungsten possesses substantial radiation shielding properties that enable highly dense, efficient shielding components. The estimated requirements of tungsten materials for fusion power stations are between 100 – 5,000 tonnes per reactor (highly design dependent), with a requirement to renew tungsten components on a regular timeline further strengthening potential demand.

Currently over 90% of global tungsten supply is produced by China (84%), Vietnam (5.7%) and Russia (2.7%). It is imperative for the security of supply of this critical material that long-term alternative supplies are established.

Fusion energy is potentially a near-limitless source of carbon-free energy for the future, and tungsten will be a key component in the process, required for dense, highly efficient radiation shielding and plasma-facing components within fusion energy devices.

Fusion energy is actively being developed to reach commercialisation with over US $6.2 billion of private investment worldwide (as of August 2023). However, without a viable commercial pathway for the supply of tungsten from raw materials to the fusion community, the commercialisation of fusion energy could face significant delays. Oxford Sigma is developing materials solutions for components such as plasma-facing based on tungsten materials.

“Following on from other recent MOUs in tungsten supply, Oxford Sigma have entered into a key collaboration agreement with Cornwall Resources Limited. This is a natural fit to further strengthen our approach to securing long-term tungsten supply for the fusion power industry. Commercial fusion power stations are expected to become the ultimate domestic energy source, providing our clean power needs for generations. To make fusion sustainable, we must address the need of securing the supply of critical minerals, such as tungsten, and the projects that will produce them. Most of the technology that Oxford Sigma develops for fusion energy depend on large quantities of raw tungsten for various applications (radiation shielding and plasma-facing components). By collaborating with Cornwall Resources, Oxford Sigma continues to grow a network of world class projects, in safe jurisdictions, aiming to establish the supply of tungsten, ensuring a secure sustainable tungsten supply for the world’s fusion reactors of the future. We look forward to working with CRL, and our other partners, in connecting and building relationships with the fusion community.”

~ Dr Thomas Davis, CTO of Oxford Sigma

“We are pleased to be working with the Oxford Sigma team who have a deep understanding of the fusion energy industry within the United Kingdom and abroad. Oxford Sigma are working to develop a long-term supply chain approach to sourcing tungsten for this key developing future technology. This agreement highlights the high grade, JORC compliant, tungsten resource at Redmoor. We believe Redmoor to be a world class deposit that has the potential to contribute towards the large quantities of tungsten necessary to advance the UK’s ambition to advance nuclear fusion technology into commercial production in the coming decades. By working with Oxford Sigma, we intend to further highlight to national government the importance of establishing domestic tungsten mining to provide long-term security of supply for the fusion community, and Redmoor’s ability to help meet these needs.”

~ Peter Wale, Executive Director of Strategic Minerals and Director of CRL

About Oxford Sigma 
Oxford Sigma is a Fusion Technology company with a vision to tackle energy security and climate change by accelerating the commercialisation of fusion energy. Our mission is to deliver materials technology, materials solutions, and fusion design services. Oxford Sigma aims to produce advanced materials technologies, agnostic to fusion approach, for the materials ecosystem. Our fusion core materials are engineered to enable longer term operations for fusion pilot plants, with the aim of roll out to the first-of-a-kind commercial power stations. Oxford Sigma is internationally recognised as a key fusion materials and technological leader. The company operates in the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, Canada, and Japan, with offices in the UK and USA. Our roots and headquarters are in Oxford, UK.

Get in touch at info@oxfordsigma.com 

About Cornwall Resources Limited

Cornwall Resources Limited (“CRL”) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Strategic Minerals Limited (“SML”) (AIM: SML; USOTC: SMCDY) focussed on advancing the high-grade, underground Redmoor Tungsten-Tin-Copper Project, through a current relogging and sampling campaign of historic drill core and continuing to progress towards securing further significant funding, as well as exploring its minerals rights licence area in east Cornwall, South West England.

The Redmoor Project is situated within the historically significant Tamar Valley Mining District, yet the sheeted vein system (“SVS”) forming the basis of CRL’s inferred resource is unmined. SML bought into CRL in 2016, and in 2019 completed the purchase of the project. CRL completed a JORC-compliant Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate (“MRE”) for Redmoor using a comprehensive archive of historical data and through the completion of two exploration campaigns, in 2017 and 2018, totalling 32 boreholes for 14,000m of drilling. An updated Scoping Study, published in 2020 shows that Redmoor has potentially economic viability as a new, underground mine.

Oxford Sigma was founded in 2019 in the heart of the city by Jonathan Musgrove and Dr Thomas Davis to address the emerging need for technology solutions in materials science for fusion energy. At the time of Oxford Sigma’s founding, Dr Davis was completing a PhD in Materials Science at the Department of Materials, University of Oxford.

For three years, Oxford Sigma was located at Harwell Campus, Oxfordshire. By making the Oxford Centre for Innovation its global headquarters, Oxford Sigma is actively involved in fostering the next generation of fusion technology innovators and engineers in Oxford. It has recently opened a satellite office in United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority’s Culham Innovation Centre, the heart of the UK’s fusion ecosystem.

The company has been working alongside the University of Oxford’s Department of Materials in solving key materials challenges with liquid lithium breeder blanket fusion technology, hosting undergraduate placements in 2022 and 2023, and collaborating on research to rapidly design radiation-tough multi-component tungsten alloys.

In addition to supporting fusion research and innovation in Oxford, the company is keen to foster the city’s growing community of fusion engineers, scientists, physicists, and professionals.

Since opening the new headquarters, Oxford Sigma has invited applications for full-time positions in fusion and development engineering as well as coordinated with universities in sponsoring future doctoral research candidates in fusion.

Photo of Dr Thomas Davis, Co-founder and CTO and Jonathan Musgrove, Co-founder and CEO outside The Oxford Trust’s Oxford Centre for Innovation

“We warmly welcome Oxford Sigma, a leader in key fusion materials, to our Oxford Centre for Innovation. We look forward to seeing the company grow as they continue their impressive strategy to accelerate the commercialisation of fusion to help tackle climate change and resolve energy security. They are now part of our 40-company strong thriving community of science and tech start-ups and spin-outs across our two centres which regularly collaborates for the benefit of discovery.”

~ Steve Burgess, Chief Executive Officer, The Oxford Trust

“The Oxford Centre for Innovation is the perfect place to continue Oxford Sigma’s story and contribute to making Oxford not only a science and technology hub, but the place for innovation in fusion within the UK. The company has come full circle and we are excited to get to work in supporting our home city of Oxford in achieving its potential as the forefront of fusion technology both in the UK and globally. The Centre is a thriving community of science and technology entrepreneurs making this location ideal for working with our partners in the fusion industry, world-leading research teams, and government towards achieving fusion as the ultimate clean energy source.“

~ Dr Thomas P. Davis, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer

About Oxford Sigma 
Oxford Sigma is a Fusion Technology company with a vision to tackle energy security and climate change by accelerating the commercialisation of fusion energy. Our mission is to deliver materials technology, materials solutions, and fusion design services. Oxford Sigma aims to produce advanced materials technologies, agnostic to fusion approach, for the materials ecosystem. Our fusion core materials are engineered to enable longer term operations for fusion pilot plants, with the aim of roll out to the first-of-a-kind commercial power stations. Oxford Sigma is internationally recognised as a key fusion materials and technological leader. The company operates in the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, Canada, and Japan, with offices in the UK and USA. Our roots and headquarters are in Oxford, UK.

Get in touch at info@oxfordsigma.com 

About The Oxford Trust

The Oxford Trust is an independent charitable trust, founded in 1985 by entrepreneurs the late Sir Martin and Lady Audrey Wood, co-founders of Oxford Instruments, the University’s first, and some say most successful, spinout company. Their mission is simple: to encourage the pursuit of science. They do this through their three connected programmes: STEM education, public engagement and innovation. While the Trust focuses on the enterprise strategy, its education and engagement programmes are delivered through Science Oxford.

Their innovation programme supports economic growth in the Oxfordshire region by encouraging enterprise. The Trust owns the Oxford Centre for Innovation in the city centre and the Wood Centre for Innovation in Headington to provide flexible and cost-effective office, technical workspace, R&D labs, co-working and virtual office space as well as 1:1 business advice to support science and tech start-ups and spinouts. Over the last 35 years, the Trust has helped hundreds of science and tech companies to flourish and grow, including Mirada Medical, Perspectum Diagnostics, Navenio and Natural Motion.

The Trust is proud that the income from its innovation centres is reinvested into our Science Oxford education and public engagement programmes, which aim to cultivate a positive attitude to science and lay the foundations for science learning.

www.theoxfordtrust.co.uk

Oxford Sigma is contributing to the publication of the upcoming American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)’s Boiler & Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) Section III Division 4 “Fusion Energy Devices”, which will be published in July 2023, that provides a development pathway for codes and standards in fusion energy. The peer-reviewed paper by Dr Davis provides a rationale for this need to develop new methods for tomorrow’s fusion power stations in line with ASME BPVC codes and standards [1].

A nuclear fusion power station will be constructed out of materials that will be used to develop components that will perform multiple functions. These functions could be structural, magnetic, thermal, nuclear, fuel production, optical, or radiation shielding. If the failure of any (or multiple) of these functions leads to a safety concern to the environment, workers, or members of the public, then a national regulator will impose assessments to determine that adequate mitigation schemes are in place to either reduce or remove the hazard. The purpose of codes and standards is to establish national or international criteria based on state-of-the-art knowledge, experience, and experimental feedback from facilities to ensure structural integrity is maintained.

[1] T. Davis, “The need for codes and standards in nuclear fusion energy”, Journal of Fusion Energy, 42, 13, 2013, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10894-023-00350-2

About Oxford Sigma

Oxford Sigma tackles energy security and climate change by accelerating the commercialisation of fusion energy. Oxford Sigma’s mission is to deliver materials technology, materials solutions, and fusion design services in order to accelerate the commercialisation of fusion energy. Oxford Sigma is internationally recognised as a key fusion materials and technological leader within the market. The company operates in the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, Canada, and Japan.

Get in touch at info@oxfordsigma.com

The framework will provide ONR with the means to procure technical services and research to support its capacity, in light of growing regulatory demands. The framework will also support ONR’s capabilities in certain niche skill areas which are not held within the organisation.

With this position, Oxford Sigma is continuing its supply of specialised engineering services to ONR. In particular, Oxford Sigma will provide expertise in Advanced Modular Reactors nuclear design, nuclear safety engineering, structural integrity, materials engineering and innovation.

“We welcome our continued collaboration with Frazer-Nash Consultancy by providing specialized engineering services to the ONR in support of such projects as the Generic Design Assessments (GDAs) of future nuclear reactors. We are integrating our unique extreme materials and engineering design skills within the UK nuclear sector to support the framework.”

Jonathan Musgrove, CEO Oxford Sigma

About Oxford Sigma

Oxford Sigma tackles energy security and climate change by accelerating the development of fusion and advanced nuclear energy. The company’s aim is to develop innovative nuclear technology to withstand extreme environments, provide nuclear materials expertise, and advise the advanced nuclear and fusion energy industries in their quest to achieve commercialisation. Internationally recognised as a highly technical SME, our growing team of engineers and scientists play an active role in the emerging supply chain ecosystem within the UK, USA and EU for fusion energy and advanced nuclear energy. Please do get in touch at info@oxfordsigma.com.

Many countries around the world committed to decarbonisation targets at the COP26 summit. However, there needs to be a dramatic shift in how electricity is generated to phase out coal and other fossil fuels. One potential solution is nuclear technology, from existing fission technology that can be scaled up, to exciting new methods of power generation like fusion energy. Scaling up fission encompasses economic considerations, waste disposal issues, and security concerns, yet the nuclear industry’s target is to provide 25% of the global energy supply by 2050. Equally, other developing technologies aspire to handle fission’s weaknesses or provide world-changing alternatives, such as transmutation of nuclear waste. This seminar’s aim was to provide insight into the technical and social challenges of nuclear energy by bringing together speakers from nuclear policy, and leaders in nuclear technology.

The panel consisted of Oxford Sigma’s CTO, Dr Thomas Davis, Franklin Servan-Schreiber, Co-Founder and CEO of Transmutex, and Dr Peter Martin, Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellow at University of Bristol.

“There was a resonance and dynamic synergy between the panel members which generated excitement in the room. The breadth and depth of experience that was present on the panel was clear due to the insightful questions posed by the audience.” ~ Dr Thomas Davis, President & CTO of Oxford Sigma.

Oxford Sigma tackles energy security and climate change by accelerating the development of fusion and advanced nuclear energy. The company’s aim is to develop innovative nuclear technology to withstand extreme environments, provide nuclear materials expertise, and advise the advanced nuclear and fusion energy industries in their quest to achieve commercialisation.

Please do get in touch at info@oxfordsigma.com

The talk focused on Advanced Modular Reactors (AMRs), or Generation IV nuclear reactors, and how they are seen as the successor to Light-Water Reactors. Generation IV nuclear reactors use non-water-based coolants, have extensive passive safety systems, and have the potential to utilise spent nuclear waste as fuel. In the last decade, the world has seen many private companies receive investment (US$ billions range) into building these Generation IV nuclear reactors within the 2030s. However, there are some significant challenges that lie ahead in realising the commercialisation of these designs; these are regulatory acceptance and overcoming technical challenges. The former is surrounding the rethink on how to licence a non-water based nuclear regime and the latter is where significant challenges still lie in selecting suitable structural materials to withstand the extreme corrosive nature of some of these exotic coolants. There is space for innovation in Generation IV reactor design, and there is a hive of activity within national laboratories, universities, and advanced fission companies.

“The wide ranging discussion on how nuclear power can contribute to the energy security of the future was invaluable.” ~ Dr Thomas Davis, CTO Oxford Sigma.

Windsor Energy Group takes its name from an annual residential meeting at Windsor Castle and is chaired by Lord Howell, a former UK energy secretary. The group holds regular expert discussions in the House of Lords and the City of London as well as in major international centres.

Oxford Sigma tackles energy security and climate change by accelerating the development of fusion and advanced nuclear energy. The company’s aim is to develop innovative nuclear technology to withstand extreme environments, provide nuclear materials expertise, and advise the advanced nuclear and fusion energy industries in their quest to achieve commercialisation.

Please do get in touch at info@oxfordsigma.com