Proxima Fusion, a Munich-based nuclear fusion startup, has secured 411 million, or $469 million, from investors including RWE AG, Germany's national energy firm, and Google NASDAQ:GOOG, Alphabet Inc.'s internet giant, as the company works toward building a fusion power plant it hopes can become operational in the 2030s.
The round was led by XTX Ventures, the investment arm of Alex Gerko's algorithmic trading firm XTX Markets Ltd, alongside London-based East X Ventures, giving Proxima Fusion a 2.4 billion valuation. The funding is expected to support the company's plan to build an energy facility on a decommissioned RWE nuclear power site in Bavaria, where its Alpha demonstrator has been projected to cost 2 billion, with Proxima and Bavaria each pledging to cover one-fifth of that amount.
Investors may view the deal as another sign that fusion energy is attracting deeper strategic capital as technology companies search for future electricity sources to support data centers. Still, the opportunity remains early-stage, as fusion is still experimental and no commercial fusion plants currently exist, although Proxima says it has now raised more than 650 million, including 95 million in public grants, while more than 90% of its investors are European.