Community Benefit Plans for the Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program

The US Department of Energy announced selections for the Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program¹ in Spring 2023. The Milestone program is a first-of-a-kind program in Fusion Energy Sciences in many respects. In this talk, we focus on one of the essential differentiators, i.e., applicants to the Milestone program were required to include Community Benefits Plans (CBPs)² to support the goal of building a clean and equitable energy economy, consistent with DOE’s Justice40³ policy priorities. Projects will implement CBPs to (1) support meaningful community and labor engagement; (2) invest in America’s workforce; and (3) advance DEIA (diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility). As fusion moves from the lab toward commercialization, it is essential to work to ensure that the benefits of fusion energy flow to disadvantaged communities and to engage communities to understand and address their concerns. The eight teams selected for funded award negotiations are: Commonwealth Fusion Systems, Focused Energy, Realta Fusion, Thea Energy, Tokamak Energy Inc., Type One Energy, Xcimer Energy, and Zap Energy.  This presentation will provide a high-level overview of CBPs for the Milestone teams, as well as the envisioned benefits of CBP activities for both the Milestone program and for the larger fusion community.

 

¹ https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-announces-46-million-commercial-fusion-energy-development

² https://www.energy.gov/infrastructure/about-community-benefits-plans

³ https://www.energy.gov/diversity/justice40-initiative