Key Findings
- The methodology ranks major fusion components by the number of American companies using them, weighted by the funding raised by those companies, while separately assigning supply chain risk levels from None to High.
- The report ranks electronics, forgings, and robotics as universal fusion inputs, followed by deuterium-tritium fuel, RF heating, molten salts, high-temperature superconductors, alternative fuels, neutral beam heating, targets, copper, liquid metals, and laser diodes and optics.
- Enriched lithium is rated High risk because the United States lacks commercial lithium enrichment capabilities, while lithium-6 access is needed for many tritium-breeding approaches in deuterium-tritium fusion machines.
- Tritium is rated Medium risk because only about 25–30 kilograms are currently available worldwide, commercial supply is concentrated in Canada, and future fusion deployment depends on successful breeding blankets.
- High-temperature superconductors are rated Medium-High risk because U.S. producers lag overseas manufacturers in volume, price, and consistency, while China is expanding production and the Japanese industry leader has Russian ownership ties noted by the report.
Overview
The report examines supply chain risks for the emerging U.S. fusion industry and argues that vulnerabilities could slow deployment unless addressed early. Its methodology maps global fusion companies with at least $50 million in known funding plus Department of Energy Milestone Program members, identifies major components and fuel inputs across fusion pathways, and ranks the most important components for American companies by company use weighted by raised funding. It then assesses the U.S. supply picture for each component, with particular attention to Chinese reliance, likely plant volume needs, and risk levels from “None” to “High.” The report finds the highest risks around enriched lithium, helium-3, RF heaters, high-power switches, tungsten, neutral beam injectors, laser diodes and optics, and high-temperature superconductors. It highlights tritium scarcity, the lack of domestic commercial lithium-6 enrichment, China’s role in several critical minerals and emerging high-temperature superconductor capacity, and specialized manufacturing gaps in heating systems and power electronics. It also identifies U.S. and allied strengths in beryllium, cryogenics, some neutral beam capability, and laser diode quality. Policy relevance centers on demand creation for fusion, onshoring and friendshoring manufacturing, targeted R&D, critical-materials management, tax credits, financing, trade coordination, and national security prioritization.
Supply chain challenges could stall a burgeoning fusion industry, and addressing them effectively will be vital for the industry to rapidly grow.
SCSP
Recommendations
- Create a Stable Demand Market for Fusion. Elevate fusion to a national security priority, as recommended in the final report of SCSP’s Commission on the Scaling of Fusion Energy.
- Onshore and Friendshore Manufacturing Capacity. Manufacturing components for fusion power plants on friendly shores would shelter the industry from foreign influence and provide markets for our…
- Prioritize R&D to Mitigate Challenges. Funding American researchers can help American supply chain leverage by both spawning industries and innovating our way out of dilemmas.
- Strategic Management of Critical Materials. A fusion machine will require a number of specialized materials with unique properties.
From the report
SCSP’s U.S. Fusion Supply Chain Report evaluates a number of fusion supply chain inputs, ranking each component by the number of companies that will use it and the funding raised by those companies, then grading the risk level of each input to supply chain disruption and its notable constituent materials. For inputs with a risk level of “Medium” or higher, the report suggests policy mitigations to ensure that American companies will have access to the relevant components and materials.
Documents
Publication
Published by the Special Competitive Studies Project. Co-publishers and external authors, where they exist, are credited in the byline above.