The Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN) in São Paulo signed an associated research entity agreement with the ITER Organization and a parallel bilateral agreement with Italy's ENEA on fusion structural materials. The agreement makes Brazil the first Latin American country with formal ITER affiliation outside of the seven member parties.

IPEN's contribution focuses on neutron damage characterization of reduced-activation ferritic-martensitic (RAFM) steels — the structural material baseline for ITER's Test Blanket Modules and for most demonstration reactor designs. The institute operates the IEA-R1 research reactor, one of the few facilities in the southern hemisphere with the neutron flux required for irradiation samples.

The institute operates the IEA-R1 research reactor, one of the few facilities in the southern hemisphere with the neutron flux required for irradiation samples.

Three Brazilian researchers will be seconded to Cadarache for the 2026-2028 period under the new agreement. IPEN superintendent Wilson Calvo described the program as “Brazil's first material participation in the global fusion enterprise.”