On 22 October 2026, Isarel’s Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure presented a new strategic report: Israel sees a historic window of opportunity to integrate into the global nuclear fusion industry. Germany features among the international collaboration oppotunities the report highlights.
The report, developed by the Ministry’s Policy Planning and Strategy Division and the Office of the Chief Scientist, outlines for the first time a framework for a national nuclear fusion strategy. It calls for immediate action to integrate Israel into this emerging global sector. The report identifies key Israeli strengths in fields such as lasers, RF (radio frequency) technology, advanced materials, artificial intelligence, power electronics, and robotics. It proposes three investment pathways—ranging from the expansion of the existing Israeli Institute for Nuclear Fusion and Hot Plasma to a comprehensive national program with a budget of 1–2 billion NIS.
Dr. Shahar Dolev, Senior Director of Development, Models, and Policy within the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure’s Policy Planning and Strategy Division, stated: “Given the continuous rise in energy demand and the need for solutions to generate clean, reliable, and accessible electricity, nuclear fusion holds the potential to be a true breakthrough in meeting global electricity needs over the medium to long term.”
The report asserts that the coming years are critical for Israel’s integration into this field. The global fusion industry is currently at a stage where future technologies, standards, and supply chains are being defined; Israel possesses unique technological capabilities that could enable its local industry to secure a significant position within the global value chain before it is too late.
Accordingly, the report proposes for the first time, a strategic framework for advancing an Israeli initiative in this sector. This includes investment in research and infrastructure, workforce development, strengthening the local ecosystem, fostering international collaborations, and formulating tailored regulations.
The global gace is already underway
Nuclear fusion is considered one of the greatest technological challenges in the energy sector. In this process, hydrogen isotopes fuse to form helium, releasing a vast amount of energy. Unlike nuclear fission, fusion reactors do not rely on a chain reaction of fissile material; the fusion process ceases the moment the necessary conditions are no longer maintained. Furthermore, the process emits no greenhouse gases during energy production and does not generate long-lived nuclear waste on the scale or with the characteristics associated with fission reactors.
While the physical principles of fusion have been understood for decades, significant technological progress in recent years has accelerated the global race to transform it into a commercial source of electricity generation.
These technological developments are accompanied by a surge in private investment. In this sector, over $14 billion has been invested since 2021, with approximately $4.5 billion invested in the last year alone—an increase of about 69%. According to estimates cited in the report, the first commercial power plants could connect to the grid during the 2030s, and a global market worth hundreds of billions of dollars could emerge between 2040 and 2050.
Tech giants are also entering the field, driven in part by the growing need for a clean, reliable power supply for data centers. For instance, it has been reported that Microsoft signed an agreement to purchase future electricity from Helion Energy, while Google invested in Commonwealth Fusion Systems and signed an agreement to procure power from a future fusion plant.
The Israeli opportunity
The report identifies several areas where Israel could integrate into the global industry as a provider of technologies, expertise, and critical components.
A foundational infrastructure for this sector already exists in Israel. About four years ago, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure established the Israeli Institute for Nuclear Fusion and Hot Plasma, which supports research in the field. Pioneering companies are also active in Israel, including nT-Tao—which is developing a compact fusion reactor and has received support during its development stages from the Ministry, and FusionMantle, which focuses on developing components for the core of fusion reactors.
The report further points to significant potential for expanding international collaborations in this field—notably with the United States and Germany—as well as for integrating into existing international alliances and research frameworks. One example is the new framework for cooperation between Israel and Germany in the field of nuclear fusion, which will bring together researchers and policymakers from both nations to advance research and technological development in the sector.
The challenges
Globally, the primary challenge is technological. At its core, it encompasses the development of reactor core components, the production and management of fusion fuel, and the conversion of fusion energy into electricity in a continuous, efficient, and economical manner.
Regarding Israel, the report identifies local challenges stemming primarily from a lack of dedicated experimental infrastructure, a shortage of professional personnel in the fields of plasma and nuclear physics, the absence of a national regulatory framework tailored to this sector, and a limited scope of industrial and academic activity compared to leading nations worldwide.
Three policy alternatives for Israel
To address these gaps and realize Israel’s potential, the report proposes several key courses of action: increasing investment in academic research; establishing and providing access to public research infrastructure; expanding the institute for nuclear fusion and hot plasma in Israel; developing training and human capital programs; fostering international collaborations and joining existing alliances; encouraging Israeli companies with relevant technologies to enter the field; and establishing a regulatory framework that will enable the development of the industry within Israel. Alongside these measures, the report presents three potential alternatives for the scope of national activity:
- “Baseline Package” – Expanding the Fusion Institute: Preserving and expanding existing capabilities through investment in scholarships, workforce training, and academic research, with an estimated cost of 50–100 million NIS over five years.
- “Infrastructure-Focused Package” – Developing a fusion research center—with an estimated investment of 0.5–1 billion NIS over 5–7 years—in fields where Israel holds a competitive advantage. This includes establishing dedicated funding mechanisms via public-private partnerships and providing academia and industry with access to national infrastructure, such as the SARAF facility.
- “Comprehensive Package” – Formulating a national fusion program with a substantial investment of 1–2 billion NIS over 7–10 years, aimed at building a complete national ecosystem. This alternative entails, among other things, establishing a national directorate, upgrading key research facilities, developing comprehensive academic training programs, and evaluating the construction of an experimental reactor in Israel through an international partnership.
In conclusion, the Ministry emphasizes that the decisions made in the coming years may determine Israel’s position within the global fusion industry for decades to come. According to the report, without government action in the coming years, Israel risks missing the phase during which global supply chains are being shaped, potentially making it difficult to integrate into them at a later stage. Beyond the potential of fusion as a future energy source for the Israeli economy, the Ministry also identifies an industrial and economic opportunity: transforming existing Israeli capabilities into products, components, and technologies that can be integrated into a new global energy industry.
Link to the study and the accompanying presentation (in Hebrew)
Source and full article: MEI
Additional information: In Germany, the Federal Agency for Breakthrough Innovation (SPRIND) has launched a milestone-based fusion program on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) at the beginning of October 2026. It is part of the High-Tech Agenda Germany (HTAD), which was adopted by the German government in 2025.