Assystem has announced a partnership with GenF, a subsidiary of the Thales group established in 2023, for the development of the TARANIS project, in collaboration with France’s Atomic Energy Commission (CEA – Commissariat à l’énergie Atomique et aux énergies Alternatives) and National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS – Centre national de la recherche scientifique). The initial duration of the partnership is until 21 December 2027.

The aim of the TARANIS project is to demonstrate the economic viability of a nuclear fusion reaction based on a high-gain fusion scheme, with a targeted gain of over 100 MW (for every 1 MW of electrical power used, the reactor generates 100 MW of fusion power).

This technology is based on the principle of inertial confinement fusion (ICF), which uses powerful lasers to compress a small capsule containing a mixture of deuterium and tritium. This generates the extreme temperature and pressure conditions required to initiate fusion.

Thales, a long-standing leader in the field of high-power lasers, is playing a key role in the project by supplying the high-energy. Assystem will mobilise its expertise in systems engineering and digital technologies to support GenF in a number of strategic areas:

Development of systems engineering processes and deployment of associated tools to develop a digital twin of the reactor;

Creation of a digital twin of the reactor, an essential tool for simulating and validating performance and safety;

Definition of the Level 0 functional analysis of the reactor to lay the foundations for the detailed design;

Support for structuring the safety approach.

In March, TARANIS was one of three projects for innovative nuclear reactors selected for support under the France 2030 plan. France 2030 is a €54bn ($56.8bn) investment plan launched in 2021 to transform the French economy. This included €8bn for the energy sector with €1bn allocated for development of small nuclear reactors. Nuclear companies which have already received funding include Newcleo, Jimmy Energy, Renaissance Fusion, Calogena, Hexana, Otrera and Blue Capsule.

The three companies selected for support in March were Stellaria, Thorizon and GenF. The TARANIS project led by GenF aims to develop and industrialise the production of electrical energy from deuterium-tritium nuclear fusion reactions obtained by inertial confinement under the pressure of high-energy lasers. GenF is working with two joint research units of the CEA, LULI (CNRS Polytechnique – CEA) and CELIA (CNRS – University of Bordeaux – CEA).