The foundations of IFMIF-DONES facility are laid

The DONES Programme partnership is growing stronger and making steps towards building the IFMIF-DONES research facility in Escúzar (Spain). Last week, representatives from the EU, Croatia, Spain, Italy, Japan and the region of Andalusia, stood side by side, shovel in hand, to lay the first symbolic stone of the facility, where a particle accelerator will be built to test the materials of future fusion reactors.

On the same day, Japan formalised its intention to join the DONES Programme by signing an agreement with Spain. Japan’s contribution will amount to 5% during the construction of IFMIF-DONES and will be increased during the operation phase. This adds to the confirmed 55% by Spain and 5% by Croatia, while Europe and Italy are defining their contributions of 25% and 8% respectively. “The integration of Japan in the programme marks the continuation of our trustful collaboration, which started in 2007 with the IFMIF/EVEDA Project. Thanks to the European and Japanese expertise, F4E, EUROfusion and QST are validating complex technologies for IFMIF-DONES,” said Philippe Cara, F4E’s DONES Programme Manager.

The advanced negotiations are reflected on the proposal for a Multilateral International DONES Agreement, presented to the fifth Steering Committee, held the day after. The document reinforces the legal framework of the partnership, establishing its governance and resource allocation. The parties also took note of the progress in areas such as intellectual property policy and team organisation, as well as the outcomes of the first meeting of the Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC).

In the current phase, F4E is supporting the programme founding phase and getting ready to contribute with staff and external support personnel to proceed with the programme’s ramp-up. Some F4E staff are already in Escúzar full-time, collaborating closely with staff from the IFMIF-DONES España consortium, as part of the DONES on-site Joint Team. “We are working as one team, putting in our own expertise and experience from other fusion projects. It’s exciting to see how things are quickly coming together,” expressed Philippe Cara.

After the EU contribution is confirmed, they will all move to the new administration building, now nearing completion.  Next to it, work will soon start on construction of the main building of the IFMIF-DONES facility, set to deliver vital know-how for future fusion power plants in Europe.