Munich-based startup Proxima Fusion has secured an additional €15 million, bringing the company's total funding to €200 million ($230 million). The fresh funding comes from, among others, the Italian sovereign wealth fund CDP Venture Capital and the European Innovation Council (EIC). The Brevan Howard Macro Venture Fund also participated.
Italy's investment through CDP underscores the importance of fusion energy for Europe's energy sovereignty. CDP invested through its Large Ventures and Corporate Partners | Energy Tech funds, the latter of which specifically supports companies developing technologies for the energy transition.
"Europe's deep-tech ecosystem plays a central role in developing future energy solutions. Fusion energy can promote technological independence, strengthen industrial competitiveness, and accelerate the growth of a carbon-neutral economy. We are convinced that Proxima will deliver and transform the global energy landscape,"
says Alessandro Scortecci, Chief Investment Officer – Direct Investments at CDP.
From capital to hardware
Proxima Fusion is immediately converting the funds into industrial implementation. Just three months after Completion of the Series A The team has already grown by 20 percent to 100 employees. With the capital, the company is securing a long-term supply of high-temperature superconductor tape, launching production of the first non-planar HTS magnets, and establishing its own cable production. In addition, prototypes of vacuum vessel segments are being developed to demonstrate the design, manufacturing, and assembly processes for stellarators.
CEO Francesco Sciortino describes the mission:
"Proxima unites public and private partners and is developing into a truly European company – with expertise, talent, and capital from across Europe. Together, we can deliver on the promise of commercial fusion energy. Our roots are in Germany, based on the groundbreaking Wendelstein 7-X stellarator experiment at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics. We are combining this heritage with a pan-European team and investor base to bring Europe to the forefront of the global fusion race."
Proxima Fusion was spun off from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics in 2023 to develop the first generation of fusion power plants with QI-HTS stellarators The goal: to complete the Stellarator Model Coil by 2027 and to build the demonstration stellarator "Alpha," which will deliver net energy gain for the first time.
