Cool deal. No idea why France was chosen, but I hope it works!
An international consortium chose France on Tuesday as the site for an experimental nuclear fusion reactor, a $13 billion project that developers hope will one day generate endless, cheap energy by reproducing the sun’s power source and wean the world off fossil fuels.
France beat out Japan to host the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor project, which is also backed by the United States, China, the European Union, Russia and South Korea. Nuclear fusion produces no greenhouse gas emissions and only low levels of radioactive waste.
France relies on well over 70% of it’s energy needs from nuclear fission reactors, which is probably why it was chosen above all others. Japan, if you’ll recall, was famous for its efforts to use plutonium in its reactors, causing infrequent accidents along the way.
Hopefully this isn’t just a $13 billion tabletop. Looking forward to the results with interest!