The Ministry of Science and ICT said on the 21st that, as a follow-up to the "fusion acceleration strategy" to move up the timetable for fusion power generation, it has finalized the "2026 fusion research and development implementation plan" and will push it forward in earnest. The plan was finalized at the "20th fusion research and development project steering committee" held that day at the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) in Daejeon.
Fusion is a technology that generates electricity by implementing on Earth the principle by which the sun creates energy. However, it requires maintaining plasma stably at ultra-high temperatures, making the technology highly challenging. The government views 2026 as the year to begin in earnest the "development of a Korean innovative fusion demonstration reactor," with the goal of creating a pipeline where research outcomes lead to demonstration and industry.
The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to invest 112.4 billion won in government funding in 2026. Compared with 56.4 billion won in 2025, this is an increase of 56 billion won, with a growth rate of about 99%.
Among these, two new projects will be launched. First, it will begin a design technology development project (2.1 billion won) for the development of a "Korean innovative fusion reactor." The goal is to set basic specifications such as power output and device size, and to flesh out a mid- to long-term roadmap for demonstration and commercialization along with a phased construction schedule.
The second new project is the introduction of AI technology across fusion research (4.5 billion won). The plan is to apply AI to plasma control, experiment and operation data analysis, and advanced design and simulation, thereby improving research efficiency and strengthening performance prediction capabilities.
While continuing research on the currently mainstream tokamak approach, the government also decided to expand support for challenging research into various fusion methods. Through the "fusion plug-in program" from 2026 to 2030 (21 billion won this year), it will support next-generation concept research and, in parallel, bolster training of specialized personnel and expand research infrastructure to back multiple approaches, including spherical tokamaks, reversed field configurations, and stellarators.
It will also revamp the industry–academia–research collaboration structure so that technology does not remain confined to the lab. The Ministry of Science and ICT will systematize collaboration among government-funded research institutes, universities, and corporations around the fusion innovation alliance and establish a "one-team promotion system for industry, academia, and research" by each of the eight core technology fields in the first half of this year. The intent is to expand corporate participation throughout the entire process of research and development projects to increase the potential for industrial linkage.
It will strengthen regional bases as well. It plans to complete a superconducting conductor testing facility (12 billion won) for testing and verifying core fusion parts and materials and to expand related research infrastructure. The Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) said the "core fusion technology development and advanced infrastructure construction project" (2026–2035, about 1.5 trillion won) applied for a preliminary feasibility study in Dec. last year, and through that process it will push to build fusion demonstration facilities in the provinces and link this to revitalizing regional industries.
The Ministry of Science and ICT also plans to prepare an "AI+fusion promotion strategy," a "global fusion cooperation strategy," and a "KSTAR 2.0 promotion strategy" to advance international cooperation and upgrade domestic research equipment. In addition, it said that by revising the fusion promotion act, it will strengthen industry support functions and, in line with global changes, reorganize the roles and functions of the Korea institute of Fusion Energy (KFE) around mission-centered tasks.
Kim Seong-su, director general for research and development policy at the Ministry of Science and ICT, said, "Through the 2026 implementation plan, we will broaden both the speed and scope of fusion research and development and systematically pursue a full-cycle strategy that connects technology development to demonstration and industrialization."