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SINGAPORE \u2013 Tapping the process of nuclear fusion for energy generation<\/span><\/a> may still be some years away, but there are still economic opportunities in this area that Singapore is well placed to capture, Minister for Energy, Trade and Industry (Energy and Industry) Tan See Leng said on Oct 1.<\/p>\n Speaking at the opening of a nuclear fusion conference FusionX:APAC held at the Biopolis, he highlighted how the fusion ecosystem is forecast to reach a value of US$419.84 billion (S$535 billion) by the end of this decade.<\/p>\n The three-day conference, organised by SGInnovate, a government-backed venture builder<\/span><\/a>,<\/span><\/a> brings together global fusion firms, researchers and investors to take stock of the opportunities and challenges of the emerging field.<\/p>\n \u201cEven for countries like Singapore without our own fusion reactor, we can leverage our talent, R&D and industrial capabilities to support the broader fusion economy,\u201d Tan said.<\/p>\n Currently, commercial nuclear energy plants tap the process of fission \u2013 where the nucleus of a uranium atom splits \u2013 to generate electricity. Nuclear fusion, on the other hand, refers to reactions that produce energy when hydrogen particles are forced \u2013 or fused \u2013 together.<\/p>\n Tan said he is encouraged by a fusion reactor that has produced more energy under experimental conditions. Most experiments usually require more energy to deliver a reaction.<\/p>\n In 2022, the National Ignition Facility in California used 2.05 megajoules of energy to deliver a fusion reaction<\/span><\/a> that produced 3.15 megajoules of energy.<\/p>\n \u201cSuch technical progress in fusion has been met with growing commercial interest, with sizeable investment flows going into fusion energy companies,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Fusion is the same process that happens on the Sun, and is more challenging to replicate on Earth because the reaction must be done in temperatures of 100 million deg C or more, which is several times hotter than the Sun.<\/p>\n But it is an attractive option in the energy sector as the fusion process has less of a risk of a runaway chain reaction or meltdown, while releasing no planet-warming carbon emissions.<\/p>\n Even as research continues on this front, there are other uses for fusion technology, such as in space.<\/p>\n During the event, Tan highlighted plasma scientist Mark Lim, who now heads space-tech firm Aliena, which develops plasma-based engines for spacecraft.<\/p>\n Fusion reactors include a futuristic doughnut-shaped chamber, called a tokamak, that contains plasma \u2013 a superheated soup of ions \u2013 where the fusion reaction takes place.<\/p>\n Tan said Singapore has much to offer the global fusion economy.<\/p>\n For one thing, the Republic has nurtured expertise and talent in areas relevant to fusion, such as in precision engineering, advanced manufacturing and in measuring the properties and behaviour of plasma.<\/p>\n Moreover, Singapore\u2019s research and engineering efforts have helped to overcome technical challenges in fusion.<\/p>\n For instance, he said A*STAR has worked with US fusion company Realta Fusion since 2025 and successfully delivered a tool to measure the speed and direction of plasma.<\/p>\n Tan also cited A*STAR\u2019s recent partnership in May with the world\u2019s largest nuclear fusion firm, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, which will focus on developing technologies for commercial fusion power plants.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n A*STAR and ST Engineering had also entered an agreement with Commonwealth to produce components for the US company\u2019s fusion demo reactor, building on Singapore\u2019s advanced manufacturing capabilities.<\/p>\n Singapore\u2019s vibrant <\/span><\/a>tech<\/span><\/a> ecosystem,<\/span><\/a> which brings together research, industry, talent and capital, also matters for emerging technologies like fusion, Tan said.<\/p>\n \u201cTurning scientific breakthroughs into commercial opportunities requires not just technical expertise, but patient capital and strong industry partnerships,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n On the potential of nuclear fusion energy for Singapore, Tan said that global developments have given Singapore new impetus to leave \u201cno option unexplored in (its) energy transition\u201d.<\/p>\n The country is diligently <\/b>studying and building capabilities in more nascent energy pathways such as hydrogen. \u201cFusion energy is one potential pathway we are following closely,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Tan noted that his ministry was officially renamed the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry (METI) on Oct 1. It was previously known as the Ministry of Trade and Industry.<\/p>\n He said the renaming reflects the increasing recognition of the importance of energy as an enabler for economic growth, climate goals and resilience.<\/p>\n Singapore has not decided on whether it will tap nuclear energy, but is making strides in closely studying nuclear fission. <\/p>\n It will undergo an assessment by the UN atomic watchdog<\/span><\/a>,<\/span><\/a> the International Atomic Energy Agency, in 2027\u00a0to determine\u00a0the\u00a0Republic\u2019s ability to make an informed decision on nuclear energy deployment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n SINGAPORE \u2013 Tapping the process of nuclear fusion for energy generation may still be some years away, but there are still economic opportunities in this…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":89355,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2611],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-89354","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-headlines","wpcat-2611-id"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=89354"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89354\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/89355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=89354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=89354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=89354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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