12 November 2024
The b.NEXT consortium (Assystem, Egis and Empresarios Agrupados) has signed with Fusion for Energy (F4E), the EU organisation managing Europe’s contribution to major international fusion projects, a multi-million deal running until 2030, for activities relating to design and construction management at ITER- the biggest international fusion experiment. Building on the expertise already provided by the partners of b.NEXT, this new contract reaffirms them as leaders in the field of fusion, having supported ITER since 2010.
ITER aims to demonstrate the feasibility of nuclear fusion by building the largest device using magnetic confinement. It brings together engineers and scientists from 35 countries, united around a common goal: to develop a clean, sustainable energy source.
A strategic contract focused on excellence and innovation
Through this contract b.NEXT will provide consulting and engineering expertise on the design and construction management activities until 2030.
Excellence in safety, quality and performance were key to awarding this contract. Innovation was also at the heart of the tender, with the use of cutting-edge digital technologies such as systems modeling and artificial intelligence, aimed at automating engineering and project management processes.
b.NEXT parties attribute their success to the strength of their strategic alliance and their ability to meet the complex requirements of such large-scale international projects. Its global vision, experience and agility has enabled the consortium to establish itself as a key group, capable of piloting major industrial projects and accompanying ITER towards a crucial new stage in the future of nuclear fusion.
The ITER project is the most ambitious nuclear research programme in recent decades. The success of b.NEXT illustrates the strength of our consortium, which brings together complementary expertise in engineering, project management and digital technologies. Assystem continues to play a major role in the development of nuclear fusion, an essential technology for the world's energy future. Having worked with Fusion for Energy (F4E) since 2010, we are proud to continue this collaboration, capitalising on the quality of our production and the valuable experience acquired by our teams. We are convinced that fusion technologies are crucial to maximizing sustainable, low-carbon electricity production worldwide, while offering promising career prospects for current and future generations.
We are proud to play a part of fusion technology, to contribute providing a concrete response to the goal of carbon neutrality by 2050, enhancing energy security, and improving the quality of life of billions of people around the globe. We can see rapid growth in fusion investment and the importance of building solid supply chains to deliver future reactors. Therefore, it was important for Egis to collaborate with F4E in ITER via the b.NEXT consortium, in order to reach this objective. This also consolidates Egis' European leadership in nuclear infrastructure and testifies our clients’ confidence in us at this historic moment in the renaissance of the nuclear industry.
The ITER project is very relevant to designing the future energy mix and a transition free of CO2. It is a complex international experiment aiming to demonstrate the technical feasibility of fusion on an industrial scale in the next decade. The project will pave the way for a sustainable, inexhaustible energy source with the capacity to provide the base load for completely decarbonized electrical systems with a minimum environmental impact. This contract builds on the great teamwork of b.NEXT partners and Fusion for Energy (F4E) since 2010, bringing together the best capabilities in advanced engineering for nuclear projects of the highest complexity.
Europe’s participation in ITER offers companies a unique opportunity to be involved in the biggest international fusion project, which will influence the energy mix of the future. They will be part of a large supply chain managed by F4E, which will strengthen their skills, boost their competitiveness, and provide them with first-hand experience in developing tomorrow’s fusion devices. Building on our previous collaboration with b.NEXT partners, we rely on their expertise and renew our commitment to excellence and timely delivery.
