F4E and Gauss Fusion sign collaboration agreement

The fusion energy field, historically driven by public research projects, is shaping into a dynamic market. Start-ups have emerged in the last years, backed by a growing investment. According to the latest report of the F4E Fusion Observatory, the fusion private sector’s funding reached 13 billion EUR globally last year. In the EU, the figure amounts to over 700 million EUR, with eight companies in the ecosystem (as of September 2025).

This diversification of technologies and strategies can complement and benefit from the lessons of major projects like ITER, in which Europe is a main contributor. In this spirit, and inspired by Gauss Fusion’s proactive and sustained outreach, Fusion for Energy (F4E) launched in 2024 a Call for Expression of Interest open to private fusion initiatives based in the EU. The aim is to bring companies and F4E closer, exploring technical synergies and strengthening Europe’s competitiveness in the sector.

In this context, F4E and Gauss Fusion recently signed a collaboration agreement. The company was founded in 2022 by a group of European industrial firms specializing in fusion technology. Gauss Fusion is working to develop GIGA, a stellarator-based fusion power plant, by building on the expertise of its industrial partners. In fact, last month an independent expert panel completed the review of the plant’s conceptual design.

The talks between both parties started in 2024, focusing on tritium breeding, a shared technological challenge (and a major one to run a self-sustaining fusion reactor). With the new framework, the cooperation will cover more areas of common interest, such as dismountable superconducting magnets, materials, nuclear analysis or supply chain. The scope is open-ended and the teams on both sides will be able to exchange knowledge and best practices, supporting their respective fusion projects.

F4E Director, Marc Lachaise, and Gauss Fusion CEO, Milena Roveda, signed the agreement in Garching, the German research hub hosting the company’s headquarters as well as F4E offices.

“We are very pleased to formalise our cooperation with Gauss Fusion, an innovative player in the sector and an active advocate for public-private partnerships. Combining the know-how of our teams and partners will help us deliver on our projects and, ultimately, boost Europe’s technological leadership in fusion,” said Marc Lachaise.

“Structured collaboration between public institutions and industry is essential if Europe is to make progress on complex fusion challenges. This agreement builds on Gauss Fusion’s early engagement to develop a constructive channel for public institutions to work with industry. It provides a framework for exploring how public and private expertise can work together in a disciplined way, and how such collaboration can be taken forward in practice,” expressed Milena Roveda.