eurofusion.org 17th June 2016
We aim to optimise the ITER Research Plan as much as possible.
Members of the ITER council (IC) came together on the 15 and 16 June 2016 for its 18th council meeting. This meeting comes at a crucial point for ITER: it has a new schedule which focusses on the First Plasma. The date for the First Plasma is set for December 2025, which the council has now endorsed.
The outcome of this meeting affects EUROfusion plans because it is in the process of updating the European Fusion Roadmap towards electricity from fusion. “One of the factors that has a major impact on the roadmap is the ITER time schedule,” says Tony Donné, EUROfusion Programme Manager and member of ITER’s Science and Technology Advisory Committee (STAC). “With the schedule for the first plasma now fixed for 2025, we can better define the time line on the accompanying research that we are doing under EUROfusion. We aim to optimise the ITER Research Plan as much as possible,” he explains.
Donné is eager to see how the IC Independent Review Group recommendation of international cooperation for the success of ITER is followed up. “EUROfusion is presently proposing to internationalise JET and to jointly operate the machine with all ITER partners,” he says. According to Donné, this will be an ideal training opportunity for all partners in the field of operation with a deuterium-tritium mixture, remote handling, and beryllium handling.
“It is very important that ITER will now have a trustworthy schedule that is followed in detail,” Donné points out. “This will bring back trust in the project. It is crucial that we move forward and get the device built avoiding further delays. I wish the ITER team and all the Domestic Agencies success with that,” he adds.
The press release of the Council meeting is available on the ITER Website.