Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson is in Japan to attend the inauguration ceremony of the breakthrough nuclear fusion magnetic fusion device, JT-60SA. It was developed jointly by the EU and Japan for the world's largest international nuclear fusion research and engineering project ITER.
On Friday, 1 December, the Commissioner will attend the ceremony to mark the start of operations of the new JT-60SA tokamak at Japan’s National Institute for Quantum Science and Technology in Naka, where she will also give a speech. The tokamak, a magnetic confinement device, is the most advanced device of the kind ever built. It has been developed through the Broader Approach (BA) Agreement signed between the EU and Japan, and as part of the EU’s commitment to lead the global research into fusion, which has the potential to produce abundant, safe and sustainable energy for the future.
JT-60SA represents a milestone in nuclear technology development and positions EU and Japan as leaders in magnetic fusion technologies. It is a satellite project of ITER, and it aims to support research to meet its technological goals, provide knowledge, and offer experts the possibility to acquire new skills. The inauguration this week comes after the team of engineers from Europe and Japan working on JT-60SA successfully achieved tokamak plasma for the first time on 24 October.
In Japan, Commissioner Simson will also discuss the ongoing work and latest developments on ITER with the Minister for Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, Masahito Moriyama; the Director-General for ITER, Pietro Barabaschi; and the Director of Fusion for Energy (F4E), Marc Lachaise. She will also hold a bilateral meeting with the Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan, Yasutoshi Nishimura; and meet with the Parliamentary Association for the Promotion of Nuclear Fusion Power Generation.
You can follow the inauguration ceremony of the JT-60SA device and the closing press remarks by Commissioner Simson and Minister Moriyama here.
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Details
- Publication date
- 30 November 2023
- Author
- Directorate-General for Energy