EU announces plans for ITER Joint Undertaking
The European Commission has published its proposals for the Joint Undertaking for the vast multinational project to develop fusion power - the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project. The Joint Undertaking will determine the EU's role in ITER. The six other partners are Russia, Japan, China, India, South Korea and the US. 'Building upon the success of the integrated Euratom fusion research programme, the Joint Undertaking will be a dynamic new organisation that will play a leading role in the construction of ITER and enhance Europe's role in the technological development of fusion energy,' said EU Commissioner for Science and Research, Janez Potocnik. The Joint Undertaking will be based in Barcelona, and will administer the EU's contributions to ITER, managing the budget and coordinating the manufacture of parts for the site in Cadarache, southern France. In addition, the Joint Undertaking will coordinate the 'Broader Agreement' between Japan and the EU to develop technologies necessary for the speedy introduction of working fusion technology, filling holes in the fundamental knowledge base. Projects coming under the 'Broader Agreement' include designing a site for materials testing, and upgrading the current fusion test site. The Joint Undertaking will have little bureaucracy and a governing board made up of representatives from the EU, Romania, Bulgaria and Switzerland. A director will administer the day-to-day running of the organisation, and should be able to pick the brains of some of the brightest and best in European research thanks to access to a number of 'Scientific Programme Boards'. The Joint Undertaking will be funded directly from the budgets of Euratom and participating members. Funds will be specially regulated, principally for the commissioning of high-technology pieces of equipment essential for the project. ITER is expected to cost some €4.75 billion, spread over 10 years. It is hoped that the final reactor will produce a reaction of phenomenal heat, using the same reacting system found in the sun - squeezing hydrogen atoms together to produce new elements, and releasing vast quantities of energy in the process. The project remains such a huge task because the temperature of the reacting plasma will be so high that it must be contained within a magnetic field. The ITER reactor is expected to open in 2016.