HH70 is a tokamak developed by the Chinese fusion power company Energy Singularity. It has been in operation since June 2024. The reactor is notable as the first tokamak to employ high-temperature superconductors exclusively for its magnet system.
Energy Singularity formed in June 2021. The design work on HH70 (Hong Huang or primal chaos) began in March 2022. HH70 was conceived to be smaller and more cost-effective than conventional tokamaks enabled by high-temperature superconductors.[2] The company completed construction in February 2024 and achieved first plasma in June 2024.[3] The company claimed that the cost was $16M. Energy Singularity is working on the successor reactor, H170, targeting a fusion energy gain factor (Q) greater than 10 by 2027 at a forecast cost of $420M.[4][5]
Unlike earlier tokamak efforts such as the Joint European Torus or ITER, HH70's magnet system is built entirely with high-temperature superconductors. The choice of ReBCO significantly reduces the reactor's required volume.[2] The number 70 reflects the major radius.[5] A similar approach is under way at Commonwealth Fusion Systems, building SPARC. First plasma in 2024 is evidence of a first-mover advantage for China.[6] In late 2024, HH70 created a toroidal magnetic field exceeding 1 tesla.[7]
