By Ejekwu Chidiebere
- Eni, a “CFS strategic investor” signs offtake agreement worth more than $1 billion for clean fusion power from CFS first ARC power plant in Chesterfield County, Virginia
- The agreement to strengthen the strategic partnership between Eni and CFS in their joint effort to commercialize fusion energy
- Eni says it signals a breakthrough in technology which also has the potential to transform the global energy landscape
- Eni says it has been a CFS shareholder since 2018, with the offtake agreement to further expand the companies’ existing technological collaboration into a commercial partnership.
Eni, together with Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), have just announced a power offtake agreement worth more than $1 billion thereby expanding their longstanding strategic partnership.
EWI (Media) gathered that the power purchase agreement (PPA) has more to do with Eni’s acquisition of decarbonized power from CFS’s 400 MW ARC fusion power plant in Chesterfield County, Virginia, which is expected to connect to the grid in the early 2030s. Financial terms Eni said were not disclosed. This Eni said was the second offtake agreement that CFS has signed in three months for its first grid-scale fusion power plant.
“The agreement with Eni demonstrates the value of fusion energy on the grid. It is a big vote of confidence to have Eni, who has contributed to our execution since the beginning, buy the power we intend to make in Virginia,” says Bob Mumgaard, Co-founder and CEO of CFS. “Our fusion power attracts diverse customers across the world — from hyperscalers to traditional energy leaders — because of the promise of clean, almost limitless energy.”
“This strategic collaboration, with a tangible commitment to the purchase of fusion energy, marks a turning point in which fusion becomes a full industrial opportunity,” says Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi. “Eni has been strengthening its collaboration with CFS through its technological know-how since it first invested in the company in 2018. As energy demand grows, Eni supports the development of fusion power as a new energy paradigm capable of producing clean, safe, and virtually inexhaustible energy. This international partnership confirms our commitment to making fusion energy a reality, promoting its industrialization for a more sustainable energy future.”
The PPA according Eni’s email statement follows CFS’ $863 million Series B2 round in which the Italian energy firm would increase its investment in CFS. Eni which says it believes in fusion said it was one of the first companies to invest in CFS in 2018 and believe in fusion which has also placed it as a strategic shareholder. It recalled that the two companies had in 2023 signed a Collaboration Framework Agreement to accelerate fusion energy development. It includes operational and technological support, project execution through the sharing of methodologies learned from the energy industry and relationships with stakeholders.
According to Eni, the PPA would further validate that CFS is strategically positioned to deliver commercial fusion power in the coming years. Adding that the company had already demonstrated its capabilities by developing key advances in high-temperature superconducting magnets, and sustaining its execution velocity in the construction of the SPARC fusion demonstration machine in Devens, Massachusetts.
Eni which refers to itself as a global tech energy company based in San Donato Milanese says it has been active in the US energy sector since 1968. Its operations include oil and natural gas production, renewables and biofuel, investing in innovative technologies for the energy transition through its Boston-based corporate venture capital division, Eni Next, Eni said.