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The newly established company, Neo Fusion, will research and
develop technologies that aim to bring controlled fusion for
commercial uses globally in two decades, the source said.
With registration capital of 5 billion yuan ($723.37 million),
Neo Fusion is 50% controlled by China's eastern province of
Anhui government-owned energy companies and investment arms,
according to the financial details in the company registration
filing seen by Reuters.
Nio invested 995 million yuan for a 19.9% stake while Nio
Capital, the investment firm founded by Nio's chief executive
William Li, invested 505 million yuan for a 10.1% share, it
showed.
"Staying true to the original aspiration of Blue Sky Coming, Nio
aims to facilitate the R&D and commercialization of nuclear
fusion technology by making financial investment into this
project," which plans to attract more strategic and financial
investors in phases, Nio said in a statement to Reuters on
Friday.
Nio Capital and Anhui's State-owned Assets Supervision and
Administration Commission did not immediately rely to requests
for comment.
Fusion is seen to one day be able to help the world slash
emissions linked to climate change. Unlike today's fission
reactors, it can generate power without producing long-lasting
radioactive waste.
Technological advances in recent years have brought it closer to
being achieved in reality, sparking an investment spree among
companies and governments globally, including the United States,
Japan and China, which want to dominate the next generation of
energy technology.
The investment by Nio also underscored the loss-making EV
maker's ambitions in the power and energy sector.
While some people have criticised battery swapping stations as a
costly investment, Nio argues that battery swapping is both a
quicker solution to powering up EVs and an energy storage
facility to improve grid stability.
It has also been developing battery technologies and is planning
to build a battery plant with annual capacity of 40 gigawatt
hours in Hefei city in Anhui province, Reuters reported
previously.
($1 = 6.9121 Chinese yuan renminbi)
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