Hines has submitted plans to build a 220K square foot R&D complex for startup Pacific Fusion at Alameda Point, the waterfront site of the former Naval Air Station Alameda.
Fremont-based Pacific Fusion, launched in 2023, is planning to develop a high-gain pulsed magnetic fusion energy driver at the facility, a demonstration project for a new power source that generates more energy than it consumes.
The startup, which raised $900M last year in Series A funding from investors including LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, is planning to enter a 24-month exclusive negotiating agreement with the city of Alameda to build the facility with Hines as its development partner.
Recommended For You
According to preliminary plans from Hines, the 220K square feet facility will include 64K of lab space, 35K of office space, 110K of high-bay R&D space for the fusion demonstration project and an 11K square feet central utility building.
Pacific Fusion plans to buy up to 24 acres at Alameda Point. In exchange for the development of the site, the firm will construct on-site and off-site backbone infrastructure valued at about $27M, the San Francisco Business Times reported.
The city of Alameda’s long-term plan for the 1,000-acre former naval air station, which closed in 1997, envisions a mixed-use redevelopment encompassing 5.5M SF of commercial space and more than 1,400 homes.
The city’s Base Reuse and Economic Development Department estimates that the massive mixed-use redo will require an estimated $700M in new infrastructure.
More than a dozen maritime, aviation and space companies have set up facilities in hangars and other existing buildings at Alameda Point.
The former waterfront base has drawn advanced manufacturing players due to its proximity to the Bay Area’s skilled labor force, large spaces available in the former hangars and the availability of electricity from Alameda Power at about half the cost of power from regional utility PG&E, SiliconValley.com reported.
Advanced manufacturing firms with facilities at Alameda Point include Saildrone, which produces robotic sailboats with sensors used for oceanographic and atmospheric surveys as well as maritime security, and autonomous aircraft companies Rain and Pyka.
Navier, a startup that has developed what it says is the world’s longest-range electric boat, moved into a former Navy storage facility at Alameda Point three years ago.
Development at Alameda Point also includes Spirit Alley, a cluster of craft breweries, restaurants and distilleries.
Full redevelopment at the former naval base has been hampered over the past 25 years by the need for remediation of contaminated soil and groundwater. The former base is a Superfund site.
The city previously entered into agreements with two master developers for Alameda Point, neither of which came to fruition. Alameda Point Community Partners pulled out of a $2B redevelopment including 1,700 homes. Also, the city terminated a redevelopment agreement with SunCal Companies.
The city has been leasing buildings in areas of Alameda Point where the properties still rely on Navy-era infrastructure and where the Navy still owns buildings that are ready for occupancy but require remediation for redevelopment.
The city has been selling buildings and properties on the eastern end of the island, where it is installing new backbone infrastructure, including new streets as well as gas and electric power lines.
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
