HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Completes Fabrication of Core Component for World’s Largest Nuclear Fusion Project

Final Vacuum Vessel Sector Module Assembled in France
World's Largest Nuclear Fusion Reactor Project Nears Completion

The final assembly of the vacuum vessel sector module for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), in which HD Hyundai Heavy Industries participated in the manufacturing process, has been completed, marking the entry of the world’s largest nuclear fusion project into its final assembly phase.

The vacuum vessel sector manufactured by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries installed in the tokamak pit. ITER website

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries announced on the 23rd that it attended the “KOREA-ITER Fusion Day” event held on the 22nd (local time) at the ITER construction site in Cadarache, France, and commemorated the assembly of the last vacuum vessel sector it produced into the sector module. This module will be transported to the tokamak pit and combined with the remaining eight modules to form a donut-shaped vacuum vessel weighing approximately 5,000 tons.

ITER is the world’s largest nuclear fusion experimental reactor construction project, jointly pursued by seven member entities: Korea, the European Union (EU), the United States, Japan, China, Russia, and India.

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries produced four out of a total of nine vacuum vessel sectors. After winning the contract for two units allocated to Korea in 2010, the company additionally secured a contract for two EU-designated units in 2016 and delivered all of them by 2024.

The vacuum vessel is a core component of ITER that confines ultra-high-temperature plasma exceeding 100 million degrees and maintains an ultra-high vacuum environment. As a colossal structure, it measures 11.3 meters in height, 6.6 meters in width, and weighs approximately 400 tons. It is required to meet extremely high standards of manufacturing precision as well as strict international quality and safety regulations.

Drawing on its expertise and quality control technologies accumulated through shipbuilding and offshore plant construction, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries successfully executed the production of the vacuum vessel. In recognition of its contributions, the company received a plaque of appreciation at the event.

Kwang-sik Won, Vice President of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, said, “The fabrication and installation of the ITER vacuum vessel represent an important milestone demonstrating the technical capability of Korea’s industry and the achievements of international collaboration. We will continue to strengthen our technological competitiveness in the future energy sector based on our accumulated know-how and experience.”

Meanwhile, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has also contributed to the establishment of Korea’s fusion research infrastructure by participating in the design of the main device structure and the manufacture of ultra-high vacuum and cryogenic vessels for the Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research (KSTAR) project.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.