Canada-based Fusion Fuel Cycles (FFC) has begun construction of UNITY-2, the world’s first integrated tritium fuel cycle system test facility capable of full-loop operations.
FFC is a joint venture between Japan’s Kyoto Fusioneering (KF) and Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) established in 2024. This extended the Strategic Alliance formed between KF and CNL in September 2023, which aims to develop and deploy deuterium-tritium (D-T) fusion fuel cycle technologies. KF was spun out of Kyoto University as Japan’s first fusion start-up in 2019.
The first project under this initiative was UNITY-2, a fuel cycle test facility located at CNL’s Chalk River Laboratories, scheduled to be commissioned by the end of 2025 and fully operational by mid-2026. UNITY-2, a fusion test loop, is seen as complementary to KF’s UNITY-1 (formerly UNITY – Unique Integrated Testing Facility). While UNITY-1 focuses on the thermal cycle system to harness heat from the fusion core, UNITY-2 focuses on demonstrating the complete fuel cycle.
UNITY-2 will pioneer the full D-T fuel cycle from fuel discharge to purification and supply, demonstrating efficient tritium processing technology in relevant conditions and at relevant rates reducing risks involved in developing a fusion pilot plant (FPP). It will address key risks in an FPP’s tritium processing plant by developing and demonstrating critical enabling technologies.
According to KF, UNITY-2 will enable continuous circulation of up to 30 grams of tritium in a 24-hour operational cycle, with the ability to expand to 100 grams under the existing building license. The facility will integrate and demonstrate all key fuel cycle technologies from fuel injection and exhaust to impurity removal, isotope separation, and tritium storage, all under prototypic fusion-relevant conditions.
UNITY-2 is now entering the construction phase at Chalk River, Ontario. Commissioning is scheduled for late 2026, at which point integrated testing will begin under controlled tritium environments. The UNITY-2 initiative, supported by strong public-private collaboration and a global network of experts, affirms FFC’s commitment to advancing fusion-enabling technologies and accelerating the timeline to commercial fusion.
As FFC scales up operations, it continues to deepen its engagement with the Canadian supply chain, targeting over 60% local procurement for major components in UNITY-2. The company is also strengthening relationships with government, private sector, and Indigenous partners and has expanded into new offices in Ottawa.
Together, FFC’s in-house team now exceeds 20 professionals, supported by a broader network of over 80 highly qualified personnel from its parent companies, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories and Kyoto Fusioneering.
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