Munich-based start-up Proxima Fusion has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Free State of Bavaria, RWE, and Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) outlining a roadmap to commercial fusion in Europe. The first stage is the construction of a demonstration stellarator, Alpha, near IPP in Garching.
It is targeted to begin operation in the 2030s with the aim of being the first stellarator to demonstrate net energy gain. It will also enable Proxima and its partners to test and validate key fusion technologies under real-world conditions and in shorter development cycles Alpha will pave the way for construction of the first commercial stellarator fusion power plant, Stellaris, planned for the site of the former Gundremmingen NPP, currently being decommissioned by RWE.
Proxima, a spin off from IPP, says Alpha and Stellaris will together create thousands of jobs and supplier contracts for European manufacturers and engineers. “The long-term aim is to make fusion an integral part of Europe’s energy system, reduce dependence on imported energy, and, for the first time, apply Europe’s fusion expertise to a grid-connected commercial project.”
Under the MOU, the Free State of Bavaria, Proxima Fusion, RWE and IPP will work together on site selection, permitting and regulatory processes, project structure, and financing. IPP will lead on plasma physics and the scientific leadership of demonstration stellarator Alpha. Proxima Fusion will lead on engineering, public procurement processes, and construction. RWE will contribute its extensive experience in the construction and operation of complex power plant facilities, as well as its strong global industrial network.
Proxima intends to finance approximately 20% of the project’s total costs, through private international investors. Subject to federal funding, the Free State of Bavaria has indicated a potential state co-financing contribution of 20% while RWE has also signalled its willingness to participate financially. However, Alpha alone is estimated to cost €2bn ($2.36bn). According to Bavaria Minister President Markus Söder, some €400m has been allocated to the project from the Bavarian High-Tech Agenda, which was launched in 2019 as a €2bn initiative which has since expanded to €5.5m.
All four partners are combining efforts to maximise chances of success in securing federal funding under the High-Tech Agenda Germany, which was launched in July 2025. This is a €18bn strategic plan designed to establish Germany as a global innovation leader by 2029. Of this over €2bn is specifically dedicated to the Fusion Action Plan approved by the German cabinet on 1 October 2025 aimed at building the world’s first fusion power plant in Germany by 2040. This includes €755m from a special federal infrastructure fund to build the pilot projects and demonstrators managed by state alliances.
Francesco Sciortino, Co-Founder and CEO, Proxima Fusion said: “With Alpha in Garching and Stellaris in Gundremmingen, we are, for the first time in Europe, connecting world-class research, privately financed and publicly supported high-tech innovation, and its industrial implementation at a single location. Bavaria is therefore evolving from a research hub into a foundational location for the fusion industry.”
He added: “Together with the Free State of Bavaria, RWE and the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics, we are working to put the first commercial fusion power plant in Germany on the grid. This is a strong and internationally visible signal that Europe is actively shaping its own energy future.”
Dr Markus Krebber, CEO of RWE, said: “The potential of fusion technology for the energy supply of the future is enormous. Thanks to an excellent research landscape and the start-ups that have emerged from it, such as Proxima Fusion, Germany can take on a key role. That is why it is good that the federal and state governments are jointly pushing this topic forward in order to build the world’s first commercial fusion power plant in Germany. We at RWE are happy to support this. Our decommissioning site, with its existing infrastructure combined with our operational expertise, offer ideal conditions to give Germany time and cost advantages in international competition.”
IPP Scientific Director Sibylle Günter said recent scientific achievements “have paved the way for this unique public-private partnership that represents tangible progress along the roadmap to a fusion power plant…. Germany is a world leader in the field of stellarator research and with this MOU we have the opportunity to further expand our world leadership.”
Markus Blume, State Minister of Bavaria, said: “Alpha is a milestone on the path to the first commercial fusion power plant on German, and Bavarian, soil. Seventy years ago, with the Garching research reactor, we were the pioneering site of Germany’s first nuclear facility. Now, we aim to be the pioneering location for the national demonstration reactor for nuclear fusion. The MOU is another result of Bavarian leadership. We were the first federal state to define nuclear fusion as a key strategic mission. With our Fusion Masterplan, we gave the starting signal as early as 2023 to move fusion from research into real-world application. …We have invested, and will continue to invest, because we believe in this technology and in the strength of our unique ecosystem.”
To support the project, Proxima Fusion also announced the launch of the Alpha Alliance, an industrial consortium bringing together more than 30 leading European and international companies to support the Alpha demonstration stellarator.
“The Alpha Alliance was formed to ensure industrial delivery of Alpha by coordinating manufacturing, system integration and supply chains,” Proxima Fusion said. “Members contribute capabilities across materials, components, assembly and infrastructure needed to industrialise and scale fusion systems … Anchored around this defined engineering milestone, the Alpha Alliance provides a structured framework to prepare Europe’s industrial base for not just delivering Alpha but for deploying fusion at scale. This approach supports targeted investment, shortens learning cycles, and accelerates the build-up of a competitive fusion supply chain.”
Members of the Alpha Alliance include: AFRY, Air Liquide, Ampegon, Bilfinger, Daher Logistik, Diamonds Materials, Dockweiler, Eni, ENSA, DWE, Framatome, Fujikura, Kraftanlagen Heidelberg GmbH, Kraftanlagen Energies & Services SE, Kyoto Fusioneering Europe GmbH, Mühlbauer, Pfeiffer Vacuum GmbH, ProBeam, Research Instruments, Rolf Kind, RWE Nuclear GmbH, Siemens Energy, SIMIC, Thales, THEVA Dünnschichttechnik GmbH, TRUMPF, TÜV Rheinland, VIA Electronic, Wälischmiller Engineering GmbH and Walter Tosto.
This coincided with the formal announcement of the cross-state Bavaria-Saxony Alliance, the foundation of which was laid in October 2025. That month Bavaria had officially launched its own “Fusion Research Offensive” as part of the High-Tech Agenda and a MOU was signed between the research ministries of Bavaria and Saxony, signalling their intent to combine efforts.
