BEST (Burning Plasma Experimental Superconducting Tokamak) by Institute of Plasma Physics, CAS: status and timeline

Milestones

Next · Main machine enters four-ring assembly

Construction beginsJan 2023Complete.
Main building completed, full-scale assembly beginsMay 2025Complete.
Roof slab pouring completedMar 2025Complete.
Dewar base installation (main machine's first component)Oct 2025Complete.
Campus delivered early and put into useJun 2026Complete.
Main machine enters four-ring assemblyTarget Oct 2026Current milestone.
First plasmaTarget Q4 2027Not yet reached.
Net fusion electricity generationTarget 2030Not yet reached.

Upcoming

Oct 2026Main machine enters four-ring assembly (next)
Q4 2027First plasma
Q4 2027First plasma target
2028D-T burning plasma experiments begin
2030Net fusion electricity generation

Current obstacles

Achieving and sustaining burning plasmaNo tokamak has yet operated in pure burning plasma regime; BEST will be the first systematic exploration of this physics.
Long-pulse stability in D-TMaintaining stable, high-performance D-T plasmas for extended periods requires solving confinement, stability, and control challenges.

Physics limits

Plasma pressure limitsMHD instabilities limit how much pressure can be confined in a tokamak; reaching high pressure without disruptions is a fundamental challenge.
Neutron wall loadingFast neutrons from D-T fusion deposit heat and damage materials; the 14.1 MeV neutrons from fusion limit material lifespans in power reactors.

How it works

3 parts

Superconducting magnets

High-field confinement

BEST uses superconducting toroidal and poloidal field coils cooled to 4 Kelvin, generating strong fields to confine plasma hotter than 100 million Kelvin.

Heating

Neutral beam and RF injection

Neutral beams and radiofrequency waves heat the plasma to ignition and maintain reaction temperatures.

Burning plasma

Self-sustaining fusion reaction

Once plasma reaches sufficient density and confinement, fusion reactions produce alpha particles that heat the plasma, sustaining the reaction.

Spec sheet

Spec	BEST (Burning Plasma Experimental Superconducting Tokamak)
Toroidal field	~9 T^R (reported)
Target fusion Q factor	≥5^R (reported)

^R reported by the company

About Institute of Plasma Physics, CAS

The team behind BEST (Burning Plasma Experimental Superconducting Tokamak)

Institute of Plasma Physics, CAS

BEST tokamak, EAST, burning plasma, China fusion

The Institute of Plasma Physics (ASIPP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, founded in 1978, develops China's fusion program. It operates the EAST tokamak and is building BEST (Burning Plasma Experimental Superconducting Tokamak), aimed at demonstrating net fusion power by 2030.

ASIPP operates EAST tokamak and is building BEST for burning plasma demonstration.
BEST entered four-ring assembly in 2026; first plasma targeted for late 2027.
Target: Q≥5 and net electricity generation by 2030 from deuterium-tritium fusion.

Company profile →

Founded: 197848 yrs
Headquarters: China
Status: Public
Valuation: public
Staff: ~400
Works in: EnergyFusion
Coverage: 2 programs · 5 updateslatest 1 Jan 2026checked 10 Oct
Partners: EUROfusion (opens euro-fusion.org)Chinese Academy of Sciences (opens cas.cn)

Spec

BEST (Burning Plasma Experimental Superconducting Tokamak)

Toroidal field

~9 T^R (reported)

Target fusion Q factor

≥5^R (reported)