Big Oil Fuses Billions into Nuclear Power Play

Nuclear fusion, long considered a lab-bound technology, is finally gaining traction in the industry. Global private investment in fusion reached a record $4.48 billion in 2025, up 69% from the previous year.

Italian energy giant Eni S.p.A., one of the biggest players, plans to deploy a commercial fusion power plant in Europe by the early 2040s or sooner. The company has already invested over $1 billion in Commonwealth Fusion Systems and will buy electricity from its first U.S. plant.

Eni is also developing a business supplying fuel systems for commercial fusion reactors, using its experience processing hydrocarbons and hydrogen to recover, purify, and recycle deuterium and tritium.