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Fusion energy represents not only a groundbreaking scientific and technological endeavor but also a significant regulatory challenge essential for its safe and efficient deployment as a clean energy source. The Bankinter Innovation Foundation’s Fusion Forward series culminates with insights from experts across the globe who emphasize the need for tailored, risk-proportionate regulatory frameworks that differ from those used in nuclear fission. These frameworks must foster innovation, ensure safety, and enable scaling without imposing undue burdens. Key voices include Susana Reyes of Xcimer Energy, who highlights the importance of regulatory clarity and agile policies like the U.S. NRC’s recent approach; Patrick White from CATF, who advocates for performance-based, inclusive regulations; and Lucio Milanese of Proxima Fusion, who stresses the need for clear European guidelines and phased licensing to reduce uncertainty in the fusion sector.
Additionally, Richard Pearson of Kyoto Fusioneering calls for international harmonization of regulatory principles to facilitate global commercialization, while Ralf Kaiser from ICTP underscores the necessity of multilateral governance and science diplomacy to address fusion’s transnational impacts. Collectively, these experts argue that regulatory evolution must parallel technological advances, balancing safety, transparency, and adaptability. This collaborative, forward-looking regulatory architecture is critical to transitioning fusion energy from experimental labs to the global electricity grid, representing a strategic opportunity for Europe and Spain to shape the energy future. The Fusion Forward series affirms that the fusion revolution’s success hinges not only on scientific breakthroughs but also on inclusive, dynamic institutional frameworks that integrate innovation, industry, capital, and governance.
Five international experts discuss how to design proportional, agile and harmonized regulatory frameworks to make fusion energy a reality on a global scale
Fusion energy not only poses an unprecedented scientific and technological challenge, but also a major regulatory challenge. To turn this promise into a real source of clean and safe energy, we need more than just advances in plasma physics or advanced materials: we need a normative architecture that allows us to innovate, build, and scale with security and confidence.
This is the latest article in the Fusion Forward series, a series promoted by the Bankinter Innovation Foundation after bringing together some of the world’s leading experts on the scientific, technological, industrial and human keys to fusion energy in the think tank “Fusion Energy: an energy revolution underway”“. We close this series with a crucial reflection: how to ensure that regulation accompanies – and does not slow down – the deployment of this technology.
In this final session of the Future Trends Forum, five leading voices shared their views on the regulatory frameworks needed by an emerging industry like fusion:
- Susana Reyes, vice president of Xcimer Energy,
- Patrick White, director of the Clean Air Task Force’s (CATF) Fusion Energy Safety and Regulation program,
- Lucio Milanese, co-founder and COO of Proxima Fusion,
- Richard Pearson, co-founder of Kyoto Fusioneering,
- and Ralf Kaiser, Programme Officer at ICTP and expert in global science governance.
From different geographies and experiences. The speakers agreed on the need to create regulatory frameworks proportionate to the real risks of the merger, differentiated from those of fission, and designed to accompany innovation. They also put on the table an ambitious vision: to achieve an international harmonization of regulatory criteria that facilitates global commercialization without compromising safety or public acceptance.
In this article, we explore their main contributions, which allow us to outline the key elements of effective regulation for energy in the 21st century. An essential debate so that the fusion revolution does not stay in the laboratories, but reaches the electricity grid as soon as possible.
Susana Reyes: enabling regulation as a facilitator, not as a brake
Susana Reyes, vice president of design at Xcimer Energy, provides a key vision from the front of industrial innovation. In his speech, he explains how the company is developing a laser fusion pilot plant (Phoenix) with a view to generating electricity on the grid in the next decade. To achieve this, regulatory clarity is critical.
Reyes welcomes the step taken by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), which in 2023 decided to regulate fusion facilities under the 10 CFR Part 30 framework, traditionally applied to particle accelerators. This framework, which is more agile than that used for fission reactors, allows the requirements to be adapted to the real risks of emerging technologies. “We can’t apply fission-engineered models to technologies with completely different risks,” Reyes says.
The new regulations, the draft of which was published in May 2025, should come into force by the end of 2026. This synchronization is critical for companies like Xcimer, which are already building subsystems and have planned operations in tritium-based facilities.
In addition, Reyes stresses the importance of incorporating security into technology roadmaps from the earliest stages. Where appropriate, they work with digital models and advanced simulations to predict scenarios, minimise waste and ensure low occupational doses and operational emissions. It also highlights the value of public-private partnerships, such as those with UNED (Spain) or the Savannah River National Lab (USA), to address challenges such as tritium management or fuel cycle simulation.
If you want to see Susana Reyes‘ presentation, you can do so in this video:
Susana Reyes: “Regulation for an Emerging Industry”#FusionForward
Patrick White: proportional, inclusive and performance-based regulation
Patrick White, head of the regulatory area at Clean Air Task Force (CATF), proposes a regulatory approach based on three fundamental principles: proportionality, technological inclusivity and performance-based approach.
For White, fusion regulation should reflect the real risks of each technology, and not impose generic requirements designed for other nuclear sources. “It makes no sense to regulate a laser confinement system with the same criteria as a pressurized water reactor,” he explains.
He also argues that regulatory frameworks should be neutral with respect to the technological approach – whether magnetic, inertial, hybrid or new approaches – and that the important thing is to demonstrate compliance through measurable results. Instead of setting prescriptive requirements (how something should be done), he proposes focusing on performance standards (what needs to be achieved in terms of safety or emissions).
In addition, White addresses a key aspect: regulation is not only technical, but also social. “Regulators need to anticipate citizens’ questions: is this safe, who controls, what happens if something goes wrong?” For this reason, it proposes that regulatory frameworks include mechanisms for public participation, transparency in decision-making, and accessible scientific communication.
If you want to see Patrick White’s presentation, you can do so in this video:
Patrick White: “Regulatory Keys to Accelerate Fusion” #FusionForward
Lucio Milanese: specific regulatory guidelines for European mergers
Lucio Milanese, co-founder and COO of Proxima Fusion, addresses the regulatory challenge from the European experience. His company, a spin-off of the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics, is working on the development of stellarator-type confinement devices, with a strong computational and predictive component.
Milanese believes that Europe needs clarity on how fusion facilities are classified. At present, there is no single framework, and each country applies different criteria. Some consider them nuclear facilities, others do not. This ambiguity generates uncertainty for startups and research centers that need to know what permits they will require, how long they will take, and under what criteria they will be evaluated.
In his speech, he defends the need to create specific regulatory guidelines for mergers, which reflect their physical, operational and material particularities. “We are not talking about chain reactions, or high-level waste, or uncontrollable heat sources. The framework must reflect that reality,” he says.
It also points out that excessive regulatory burden in early stages can discourage development. It proposes to move forward with a phased licensing system (e.g., conceptual design, pilot plant, limited operation, full operation), which allows the regulator and the company to learn together, reducing uncertainty and costs without compromising safety.
If you want to see Lucio Milanese’s presentation, you can do so in this video:
Lucio Milanese: “Regulation for an Emerging Industry” #FusionForward
Richard Pearson: harmonizing without homogenizing, to scale globally
Richard Pearson, co-founder of Kyoto Fusioneering, provides the perspective of a company that operates between Asia and Europe, and who takes a close look at how regulatory differences between countries can become barriers to scalability.
Pearson warns of the risk of fragmentation if each country adopts very different frameworks. Not only does this create additional costs for businesses, but it also makes collaboration, cross-border investment and technology transfer more difficult. “We need to harmonize basic principles, even if we don’t have a single global standard,” he explains.
It proposes several possible ways to move in this direction: the mutual recognition of licenses (as in the case of aviation), the creation of voluntary international standards (as in medical technology or ICT), or the definition of “common minimum frameworks” that each country can adapt.
It also proposes to create an international consortium of regulatory and business actors that share experiences, best practices and technical criteria. “Regulation cannot always lag behind technology. We need to build it in parallel, and do it together.”
If you want to see Richard Pearson’s presentation, you can do so in this video:
Richard Pearson: “Regulation for an Emerging Industry” #FusionForward
Ralf Kaiser: global governance for a technology with a planetary impact
Ralf Kaiser closes the panel with a longer-term vision: the need to move towards international governance of the merger, with common principles, multilateral cooperation and eventually a shared legal framework.
From its experience in the ICTP and with organizations such as the IAEA, Kaiser recalls that technologies with transnational impact – such as fusion – must also be addressed from science diplomacy. “Tritium, strategic materials, waste, radiation protection… These are issues that transcend borders. You can’t leave it to national regulators alone,” he says.
It proposes to start by building a minimum technical consensus – based on scientific evidence and experiences from projects such as ITER – and from there create a set of voluntary principles that countries can adopt. This approach could be led by organizations such as the IAEA, the OECD or even forums such as the G20.
He also points out that developing countries must be included in this debate from the outset, in order to avoid a new technological divide. “Global fusion governance must be inclusive, preventive, and knowledge-based. If it is not built now, it will be more difficult to correct later.”
If you want to see Ralf Kaiser’s presentation, you can do so in this video:
Ralf Kaiser: “Licensing and Regulation for Fusion Energy” #FusionForward
Conclusion: Designing the future of fusion is also an institutional issue
The closing of this series makes it clear that the success of fusion energy will not depend solely on advances in physics, engineering or materials. It will also be a question of institutions. How it is regulated, how it is authorised, how trust is established between innovators, administrations and citizens.
The voices collected in this latest article on mergers from the Future Trends Forum agree on a warning: if regulatory frameworks do not evolve at the pace of technology, we run the risk of slowing down their deployment just when it is closer than ever. The good news is that this debate has already begun. And it does so with a mature, global and collaborative vision.
From the agile and flexible approach promoted by the US, represented by Susana Reyes and Patrick White, to the technical caution and search for regulatory clarity proposed by Lucio Milanese from Europe. From Richard Pearson’s call for international harmonization, essential for a global industry, to Ralf Kaiser’s proposal for multilateral governance, which places fusion in the field of science diplomacy.
They all agree on one key idea: regulation cannot always lag behind. It must be built in parallel to technology, with a vision of the future, proportionality and constant dialogue. And it must do so with clear principles: safety, transparency, inclusion, and above all, the ability to adapt to an industry that is just beginning to define itself.
For Europe, and for Spain in particular, this moment represents a strategic opportunity. Both to innovate and to influence. To contribute to the design of standards, guidelines and regulatory principles that accompany the development of the merger and position our institutions and companies as key actors in this transformation.
The Fusion Forward series has shown that the fusion revolution is real, plural and global. That their challenges go beyond science, and that their success will depend on ecosystems capable of integrating talent, industry, capital… and rules of the game. The energy future is also at stake in the regulatory field. And it is played now.
This article closes the analysis that we have carried out at the Bankinter Innovation Foundation. The full report, Fusion Energy: An Energy Revolution in the Making, brings together input from more than twenty international experts and defines the five critical axes for scaling fusion energy as a climate, economic and technological driver.
Download it here and find out in detail how we can build tomorrow’s energy system today.
And if you are interested in continuing to explore this transformation, don’t miss the previous installments of the Fusion Forward series, where we bring society closer – with rigour and vision – to the keys to the energy future that is already being designed.
Vicepresidenta de Diseño de Cámaras y Plantas en Xcimer Energy
