Thought Leadership in Infrastructure and Real Assets

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Google is placing a major bet on nuclear fusion through its investment in Commonwealth Fusion Systems, a startup spun out of MIT. The article highlights that while nuclear fusion has never been commercially successful, it holds the promise of producing clean, limitless energy without greenhouse gas emissions or long-lived radioactive waste. At Commonwealth’s campus in Devens, Massachusetts, workers are assembling the high-powered magnets necessary to contain the ultra-hot plasma required for fusion reactions—a technically daunting feat.

This move signals Google’s confidence in fusion's long-term potential, despite its many challenges and uncertain timeline. For a deeper dive into the article’s details, you can read it directly on Barron’s.

U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright signed his first order on February 5, 2025, titled “Unleashing the Golden Era of American Energy Dominance.” It’s a hefty directive, pushing the Department of Energy to fast-track efforts to ramp up domestic energy production and sharpen America’s edge on the global stage.   

The focus is to produce more energy through innovation — think next-gen nuclear, geothermal, and fossil fuel technology — while reinforcing infrastructure like the grid and LNG export terminals. Wright is also gunning for deregulation, aiming to slash red tape that’s choked projects, from permitting delays to appliance efficiency rules, all to get energy flowing faster and cheaper.

Companies that own nuclear reactors have been the biggest beneficiaries of rising demand for nuclear power for most of this year. That includes Constellation Energy and Vistra, whose stocks have more than doubled this year.

Now, a new group of nuclear stocks is beginning to rise—companies that are designing, building, and fueling new kinds of reactors. That includes NuScale Power, Oklo, BWX Technologies, and Centrus Energy, and their ascent may just be getting under way.

In the face of economic instability and changing market conditions, investors are becoming more inclined to explore alternative assets as part of their allocation strategy. 

Most investors construct their portfolios by allocating their investments to traditional assets, such as equities, fixed-income securities, and liquid funds. These can offer both growth and a degree of diversification. Nevertheless, certain investors pursue diversification that extends beyond these traditional asset categories.

The environmental and energy policies anticipated under President-elect Donald Trump will substantially differ from those of the Biden-Harris administration. The energy sector, for example, rose sharply the day following Trump’s victory, with the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) rising over 4% on optimism about fossil fuel investments under Trump’s expected pro-oil and gas policies. In contrast, shares of renewable energy businesses declined dramatically across the board.