Capital intensity and first-mover risk create unprecedented financing challenges for fusion power plants. Understanding how to fund and de-risk FOAK plants will determine whether and when fusion reaches commercial viability.

• What blend of equity, debt, guarantees, incentives and insurance can finance a FOAK fusion power plant? 
• How are risks – construction risk, technology risk, and market risk – allocated and on what terms?
• Which proof-points from the FOAK will credibly reduce capital costs, construction timelines, and financing costs for NOAK plants?
• How can advanced simulation, digital twins, and AI-driven modeling reduce contingencies, improve schedule certainty, and strengthen the investability of FOAK fusion plants?How do NRC licensing timelines, state permitting processes, and regulatory uncertainty affect insurance pricing, debt terms, and project schedules?

Moderated by: Jonathan ‘JD’ Dowel, VP for Operations, Nuclear and Environmental, Flour