Commonwealth becomes first fusion energy firm trying to connect to major US grid

WASHINGTON, April 28 (Reuters) - Commonwealth Fusion Systems, a private U.S. company hoping to build the first company to generate power with a process that mimics the sun, said on Tuesday it has become the first fusion company to apply to join a major power grid operator.

Commonwealth, which is planning to open the plant in Virginia in the early 2030s, applied to join PJM, the largest U.S. grid operator.

• Approval process should take four to six years, Commonwealth said.

• Nobody knows if fusion will ever become commercial, but private investors are pouring money into the industry.

• Commonwealth has amassed the most investment in the industry, more than $3 billion.

• PJM is working through a massive backlog of projects it is considering.

• U.S. power demand is growing for the first time in decades amid boom in data centers needed for artificial intelligence, the electrification of transportation and crypto-currencies.

• Alphabet's GOOGL.O struck a deal last year to buy power from the plant.

• "It's another piece of the puzzle," said Bob Mumgaard, Commonwealth co-founder and CEO said about the PJM application. "This is about having all the pieces in the place so that you can, in the early 2030s, operate a fusion power plant."

• Commonwealth's about 400-Megawatt commercial plant, expected to begin construction in 2027 or perhaps late this year, is about half the size of a conventional fission nuclear reactor.