Fusion power in Germany and the EU: political momentum and IP strategies as a key success factor

Fusion power plants and their commercial deployment are currently among the most prominent topics in energy policy – not only within the scientific community, but increasingly in the political discourse. Against the backdrop of energy security concerns, decarbonisation targets, and geopolitical tensions, there is growing political momentum to position fusion as a cornerstone of a secure, long-term, and climate-neutral energy supply.

Support for fusion research is thus being advanced consistently across all governance levels. At EU level, the European Commission is setting clear financial and strategic priorities through the EURATOM Work Programme 2026–2027. At federal level, Germany is sending strong industrial and innovation policy signals through initiatives such as “Fusion 2040”, the action plan “Germany on the Path to a Fusion Power Plant” and the new “Hubs for Fusion” funding guidelines. In parallel, the German federal states are competing to attract facilities and capture value creation – for example through the Fusion Research Alliance, initiatives such as the Fusion Campus Biblis and large-scale funding programmes in Bavaria aimed at securing demonstration and future commercial power plants.

Notably, intellectual property (IP) frameworks and exploitation strategies are increasingly recognised as central elements of funding policy. The federal “Hubs for Fusion” guidelines already require applicants to provide detailed information on IP arrangements, protection strategies and exploitation plans at the application stage. As a result, robust IP frameworks are no longer ancillary but have become integral to the design of fusion R&D projects – and must be legally sound from the outset.

This article examines

• how the political momentum around fusion energy at EU, federal and state level translates into concrete funding instruments,
• the roles of the EURATOM programme, EUROfusion, the “Hubs for Fusion” initiative and the federal states’ Fusion Research Alliance, and
• why legally robust IP structures, cooperation agreements and exploitation models have become critical success factors for fusion projects – both in securing public funding and in enabling the subsequent commercial deployment of fusion technologies.

As such, this article offers valuable insights in particular for technology and energy companies investing in fusion and related technologies, representatives from the high‑tech industry, fusion‑related start‑ups, medium‑sized companies seeking to enter supply chains for fusion plants, research institutions, consortia as well as venture capital (VC) and other investors.

A. Political momentum for fusion energy in Germany

As early as 2024, the German federal government launched the “Fusion 2040 – Research on the Path to a Fusion Power Plant” programme. With its action plan of October 2025, the government reaffirmed its objective of building the first fusion power plant in Germany (Noerr Insight). Fusion research is thus being explicitly embedded as a strategic pillar of Germany’s energy and technology policy.

In parallel, the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) is advancing the operational design of funding policy. As part of the “Fusion 2040” programme, the Ministry hosted the first Fusion Congress on 24 March 2026 and, alongside this, prepared the “Hubs for Fusion” funding guidelines, which were published in the Federal Gazette on 17 April 2026. This framework provides funding for three central hubs – magnetic fusion, laser fusion, and fuel cycle/material development – each subject to clear requirements regarding strategy, governance, and, in particular, IP and exploitation models.

Further political initiatives underscore this direction. At the federal state level, too – for example through the Fusion Research Alliance, now comprising seven regional states, and through Bavarian initiatives relating to demonstration facilities – the ambition to establish Germany as a leading fusion location is becoming increasingly evident. Most recently, at its executive retreat on 27 to 28 April 2026, the federal board of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group called in its policy paper “Policy Change Has Begun – High-Tech for Germany’s Future (Nuclear Fusion)” (draft as of 26 April 2026; meanwhile adopted) for the swift creation of a dedicated legal framework outside traditional nuclear law for the construction and operation of fusion power plants. It also emphasised the need to clarify legal issues relating to the allocation and use of intellectual property in joint research projects between academia and industry.

The political commitment to advancing fusion research and progressing towards a first fusion power plant is now being articulated at the highest levels and across the political spectrum and is increasingly reflected in concrete funding programmes and regulatory initiatives.

B. Funding landscape: European Union, federal and state level

Across all levels of public funding – European Union, federal, and state – fusion power and the promotion of fusion energy research have become firmly embedded on the policy agenda.

It is also evident that the protection of intellectual property and the structuring of IP exploitation models are taking on an increasingly prominent role in funding calls, in the evaluation of fusion-related projects and in the prospects for commercial exploitation of fusion technologies.

I. EU level: fusion within the European funding mix

At the level of the European Union, support for fusion research has long been part of the broader policy and funding landscape. In particular, the EURATOM Work Programme, which has recently issued calls providing increased funding for fusion energy, together with the EUROfusion research network, has firmly established fusion research within the EU’s funding framework.

1. EURATOM Work Programme 2026–2027

At EU level, the European Commission is placing a clear emphasis on fusion energy through the EURATOM Work Programme 2026–2027. Under this programme, which is funded in addition to Horizon Europe, a total of €222 million will be allocated to accelerate the transition of fusion energy “from the lab to the grid”. A central element is the establishment of a European public-private partnership (PPP) on fusion energy, alongside targeted support for fusion start-ups via instruments of the European Innovation Council, complemented by talent development measures and improved access to research infrastructures.

Of particular practical relevance are the dedicated calls under the co-programmed European Partnership on Fusion Energy. The EURATOM Work Programme 2026–2027 provides for two Innovation Actions on “Key Enabling Technologies for Fusion Power Plants” (HORIZON EURATOM 2027-01-01 and HORIZON EURATOM 2027-02-01), with the first call expected to open on 15 September 2026.

Funding is directed at projects that advance key technologies for fusion power plants, notably plasma heating and current drive, high-temperature superconducting magnets as well as diagnostics and control systems, to a high level of technological maturity. These technologies are to be demonstrated under realistic conditions and supported by a robust business case, including a clear pathway to commercialisation. The Commission explicitly requires close collaboration between public research institutions and private-sector actors (start-ups, SMEs and industry) as well as integration into existing EU structures, especially EUROfusion and Fusion for Energy.

2. EUROfusion research network

A key player in European fusion research is the EUROfusion consortium. Established in 2014 by fusion research institutions from EU Member States and Switzerland, it now brings together and coordinates Commission co-funded fusion research across 25 EU Member States, as well as Ukraine and Switzerland (with Norway and the United Kingdom participating through national funding) on behalf of the Euratom programme.

EUROfusion coordinates and funds European fusion research as a joint programme under Euratom/Horizon Europe. Its objective is to pave the way towards fusion power plants by systematically advancing the development of reactor designs, materials, technologies, and research infrastructures, with a view to establishing fusion as a CO₂-free, baseload energy source in the long term.

II. Federal level: “Hubs for Fusion” and intellectual property (IP) as a key topic

The German federal government is increasingly focusing on fusion energy. The funding programme “Fusion 2040” is now reflected in dedicated funding guidelines that support concrete research hubs.

1. “Hubs for Fusion” funding guidelines

With its planned support for fusion power plants in Germany, the federal government is sending a clear signal in terms of industrial and innovation policy while placing issues of intellectual property (IP) at centre stage. On 24 March 2026, the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space hosted its first fusion congress, at which it also presented the Hubs for Fusion funding guidelines.

The Hubs for Fusion guidelines were formally published in the Federal Gazette on 17 April 2026. Both the strategy outline and the application for hub management may be submitted until 18 May 2026. The guidelines provide for funding by the Ministry for three fusion hubs in Germany:

• hub for magnetic fusion
• hub for laser fusion (technology-neutral)
• hub for fuel cycle and materials development as cross-cutting technologies

2. IP models and protection strategies as a key evaluation criterion

The funding guidelines make clear that IP arrangements and IP strategies are an integral part of the funding framework:

• IP and protection strategies must already be outlined at the application stage; they constitute a relevant evaluation criterion.
• The hub’s strategic plan (roadmap) must include an initial outline of the IP strategy as early as the project proposal stage (section 7.3.1(f) of the funding guidelines).
• In the selection and decision-making process, factors assessed include the “quality and robustness of the exploitation plan, integration into the research ecosystem, access rules, and IP arrangements and strategy” (section 7.3.3 of the funding guidelines).
• Project partners are to hold the rights to intellectual property, industrial property rights, and copyrights in the project results (see section 2(9) of the funding guidelines; section 3.2 of the Ministry model hub management application; section 2.3 of the Ministry model strategy outline).
• In addition, the standard ancillary provisions for R&D funding apply, in particular with regard to restrictions on exploitation outside the EU.

This makes it clear that the legally robust design of IP models, IP exploitation structures and R&D collaborations is not a side issue for the funding of fusion projects, but a decisive success factor.

III. State level: competition for fusion sites

On 31 October 2025, the federal states of Bavaria, Hamburg, Hesse, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein established the Fusion Research Alliance on the basis of a joint policy framework; Baden-Württemberg joined the alliance on 8 January 2026. Its objective is to pursue a shared mission of advancing the research, development, construction, and operation of commercially viable fusion reactors through close cooperation between industry and academia. The alliance views fusion as a baseload-capable, climate-neutral energy source and a strategic competitive factor. To this end, it seeks to leverage and combine the locational strengths of the participating states, primarily in the two currently most promising technological approaches: magnetic confinement fusion and laser-driven inertial confinement fusion.

The alliance is building on a connected innovation ecosystem with key hubs such as the Fusion Campus Biblis (Hesse), Wendelstein 7‑X and the planned Institute for High Energy Density Physics (Mecklenburg‑Western Pomerania), the laser and simulation platforms at HZDR (Saxony), the European XFEL (Hamburg/Schleswig‑Holstein) and the planned new stellarator at IPP Garching (Bavaria). The partners aim to closely align their activities with the federal government’s Hightech Agenda Germany and the Action Plan on Fusion, to network education and training across state borders, to open up research infrastructures and to build robust supply chains together with the supplier industry.

At state level, Bavaria is at the forefront in pushing fusion energy forward. On 26 February 2026, Minister-President Markus Söder announced plans to invest up to €400 million in fusion projects in order to position the state of Bavaria as a key location for demonstration plants and, in the longer term, commercial fusion power plants. The funds are part of a memorandum of understanding with start-up Proxima Fusion, RWE and the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP): under IPP’s scientific lead, a first demonstration plant (“Alpha”) is to be built in Garching. This Bavarian initiative complements federal funding and underscores the emerging competition between the reginal states for infrastructure, value creation and know‑how in the field of fusion energy.

C. Legally safeguarding IP models and fusion projects

The funding landscape outlined at EU, federal, and state level gives rise to complex requirements for IP models, exploitation strategies, and contractual cooperation structures.

1. Exploitation restrictions, spill-over obligations and other mandatory requirements for funded projects

For projects funded in Germany, the Ancillary Terms and Conditions for Grants on a Cost Basis to Companies in the Commercial Sector for Research and Development Projects (NKBF) (the “Ancillary Terms”), issued by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, play a key role as part of the grant notification. These ancillary provisions also give rise to restrictions regarding the exploitation of intellectual property generated within the research project.

Already at the application stage, the intended exploitation objectives must be specified in detail (3.3 of the Ancillary Terms 2017). While the grant recipient is, in principle, entitled to the exclusive right to exploit the project results (3.2 of the Ancillary Terms 2017), the funding conditions also impose certain restrictions on exploitation (3.4 2017): for example, exploitation of the results outside the European Economic Area and Switzerland is only permissible with the prior consent of the granting authority (3.4.1 2017). Likewise, the grant recipient may be required to grant the funding authority a non-exclusive, transferable right of use (3.4.2 2017). In addition, the grant recipient must ensure appropriate and effective protection of the results, make the results available free of charge for research and teaching in Germany under certain conditions, and is obliged to exploit the results (obligation to exploit) (3.5, 3.6 2017).

Overall, so-called spill-over obligations can also be identified: in research funding, the granting authority generally aims to leverage spill-over effects in order to generate added value beyond the individual grant recipient – for example, through non-economic access to results for research and teaching, obligations to exploit results, and the integration of additional actors into value creation and innovation chains.

These considerations are particularly essential for international groups operating in the technology and energy sectors, as the international exploitation of IP arising from funded projects may, as outlined, be subject to specific exploitation restrictions. Equally, the legal options for structuring multinational IP exploitation strategies are especially relevant for investors.

2. Growing need for advice regarding fusion funding projects

Noerr has extensive experience in advising on funding and research projects with complex IP structures (including at the interface between technology development, collaborative research and industrial exploitation) as well as in the cross‑sectional areas of public commercial and regulatory law, energy and infrastructure law, corporate/M&A and venture capital/private equity, foreign trade law and investment control, and financing.

Our advisory services include in particular:

• designing and negotiating IP exploitation models in high‑technology projects,
• drafting consortium and cooperation agreements incorporating the relevant subsidy law requirements,
• performing legal assessments of IP strategies and protection strategies as part of project outlines, roadmaps and application documents,
• providing support in interactions with funding authorities, focusing on exploitation, access rules and cross‑border transfers,
• advising on R&D exploitation restrictions and export controls, especially for projects involving non‑EU partners or exploitation outside the EU,
• structuring and implementing joint ventures, PPPs, SPVs and growth financings (including venture capital and private equity) for demonstration plants and start ups, for example,
• advising on foreign trade law and investment control, focusing on investments by international investors, technology transfer and the classification of fusion infrastructure as critical infrastructure,
• structuring project financings for demonstration reactors and future power plants (including EPC contracts) as well as positioning projects within the ESG and EU taxonomies

By combining our expertise in funding law with our long standing IP and technology transfer experience, and leveraging our full service capabilities in the areas of energy & infrastructure, regulatory, corporate/M&A, finance, foreign trade/investment control and ESG/environment, we support you in structuring your projects in a way that is eligible for funding, IP robust and economically scalable.