IPP, Bavarian State Government, Proxima Fusion and RWE sign memorandum of understanding

On 26 February 2026, the four partners signed a framework agreement providing for the construction of a demonstration stellarator called „Alpha“ in Garching. The Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) will take the scientific lead in this project.

With the Memorandum of Understanding signed in Munich on 26 February 2026, the Bavarian State Government, the start-up company Proxima Fusion, the energy supplier RWE and the IPP confirm their intention to cooperate in the design, construction and operation of a fusion demonstrator „Alpha“ and a possible pilot power plant „Stellaris“ at suitable locations in the Free State of Bavaria.

As a precursor to such a power plant, the Alpha demonstration facility based on the stellarator concept is to be built in Garching. A specific location for Alpha near the IPP is currently being examined.

„This proximity is no coincidence, but a strategic advantage: it enables the close integration of scientific excellence, technological development and industrial implementation,“ says Prof. Sibylle Günter, Scientific Director of the IPP. ”In addition to the globally favoured Tokamak line, our institute has also consistently developed the optimised Stellarator over the past decades. This approach pursues the goal of realising a fusion power plant that is inherently designed for continuous operation – a decisive advantage for future energy supply."

The planned demonstrator in Garching will use the technological and scientific findings – in particular from the successful experiments at the IPP Wendelstein 7-X stellarator in Greifswald – to prepare for commercialisation.

Prof. Günter: "With the large-scale Wendelstein 7-X experiment at the Greifswald site, we were able to show that the optimisations calculated in advance are indeed successful. Wendelstein 7-X has impressively demonstrated that an optimised stellarator can achieve excellent plasma properties and has the potential for an economically viable fusion power plant. Like Proxima Fusion, we are convinced that stellarators can be the better fusion power plants in the long term. At the same time, Wendelstein 7-X has also clearly shown us which open questions still need to be answered on the way to a power plant. This is exactly where the Alpha project comes in. Together, we want to take the next decisive step in a strong public-private partnership."

The IPP will take the lead in plasma physics in the project and define Alpha’s scientific mission. Proxima Fusion is responsible for the engineering, public tenders and construction of the facility.

"We are planning the Alpha project to complement Wendelstein 7-X. W7-X will continue to demonstrate that stellarators can operate continuously. That is why Alpha will only be equipped for relatively short plasma pulses, but it will scale the heat confinement in the plasma for a commercial power plant – a capability that Wendelstein 7-X does not have," explains Prof. Günter.

Alpha is to be advanced within a magnetic fusion hub, which has been put out to tender by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) and is intended to accelerate the development of Germany’s first commercial fusion power plant as part of the country’s High-Tech Agenda. The partners will submit a corresponding funding application, which may also be open to other participants.

Subject to funding approval, Proxima Fusion intends to raise 20 per cent of the costs for Alpha from private investors. RWE is also considering a participation. The Bavarian state government has promised up to 400 million euros in co-financing, subject to budgetary constraints. Two billion euros have been budgeted for the entire Alpha project.

In a final step, RWE, Proxima Fusion and the Free State of Bavaria aim to use the site of the former RWE nuclear power plant in Gundremmingen for the construction of a commercial fusion power plant called Stellaris. Gundremmingen is also an option for additional manufacturing and research and development capacities in parallel with the construction of Alpha, for example for magnet production.

Prof. Günter: „With the IPP, Germany is an absolute world leader in the field of stellarator research, and with this Memorandum of Understanding, we have the opportunity to further expand this leading role.“