Fusion energy developers: engage early with regulators

How fusion energy developers can engage early with the Environment Agency and Health and Safety Executive to get regulatory advice before applying for permits and other approvals.

If you are proposing to develop a fusion energy facility in England, you can engage with the regulators to get advice before entering formal regulatory processes. Your facility can be a research and development facility, a scaled pilot plant or a commercial plant.

This guidance explains how fusion developers can enter the early engagement process with the Environment Agency and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

This guidance is for organisations exploring or proposing developing fusion facilities in England but may also be helpful to other parties interested in the process.

For more information on the environmental regulation of fusion energy, see Fusion energy: environmental regulation.

You can also read more about HSEs role in regulating fusion.

The fusion industry is rapidly developing from research and development towards commercial power generation. The Environment Agency and HSE are the regulators for fusion in England. 

If you are involved in designing or potentially developing and operating a fusion facility, engage with regulators early to:

Early engagement is voluntary. You are not required to request early engagement to get a permit or meet other regulatory requirements.

Regulators will consider requests for early engagement on a case-by-case basis. 

The regulators will review their approach to engagement to ensure it:

How to enter the fusion early engagement process

Step 1 – Check that you are ready to engage with the regulators

Before contacting the regulators for early engagement, you need to ensure any project is at an appropriate stage to enable productive discussions.