Our February Q&A event was with Chris Ajemian, VP Business Development and Regulatory Affairs at CTFusion.

Here are three insights from the event:

1. Fusion will affect the whole globe, so foreign policy will have a role.

Often we hear about the possibility of fusion to break the geopolitics of energy due to the fuels being abundant and evenly distributed around the world. However, fusion will affect the whole globe, so foreign policy will have a role. Geopolitical aspects will be a big part of what happens. 

"There is going to be substantial uncertainty in energy infrastructure investment over the next few decades. Climate change is forcing a lot of decisions to be made with haste.”

“The richer countries have the most resources and options for fusion energy. If we look to see which countries around the world are investing in oil and gas, in fission, or in new technologies, we can kind of see who is going to be the leaders. That doesn’t mean that fusion won’t have benefits for everyone on Earth. If all the countries around the world had as much carbon free energy that they could make safely on their own territory, it could mean that energy scarcity and the competition for energy could be eliminated.”

2.   Lack of trust between countries raises the cost of business.

In non-aligned states deals will have to be established on a case by case basis. It will be easier when there are agreements and relationships already. Technology can be shared much easier through established channels.

Multilateral treaty conventions are controlled by their member states and have little enforcement power on others. The operating landscape for fusion will be made through bilateral deals on a geopolitical basis.

3.  Future roll out—will fusion be commoditised or controlled.

There will be crosswinds and it will be hard to predict. We need to be careful to avoid the naïve sense that people around the world will not use the technology for purposes other than designed. 

Technology which could be used for other purposes should be controlled and the consequences of all shared technologies must be considered.

A full pdf summary of key insights, plus the Q&A event replay, is available to Game Changer members of Fusion Energy Insights. Join us now for full access to all the insights.

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