Chevron has invested in Google-backed nuclear fusion start-up TAE Technologies in the latest sign of the fast-growing interest in the potential of the energy technology to deliver safe zero-emissions power.
The US oil major invested in TAE alongside Google and Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation as it raised $250mn to fund the sixth-generation of its fusion research reactor in California, the company said on Tuesday.
The prospect of combining atomic nuclei to generate power has excited scientists for more than 60 years but has only started to attract significant private investment in the past decade, as efforts to limit global warming by cutting emissions have gathered pace.