On 24 May 2006, representatives of seven countries including Russia, US, India, China, Japan, South Korea and the European Union will start work on an agreement towards the formal establishment of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) fusion energy project. The ITER fusion project aims to produce 500 MW of energy initially and is to be built in Cadarache, France. India was admitted onto this project as a fulltime member on 6 December 2005.

For India, collaboration in this project is what is being touted as her "moment of glory in the nuclear sun." The benefits of participation in this project are manifold for India's nuclear progress. This collaborative research project includes seven countries that between themselves represent more than half the world population. This makes ITER an international collaboration of unprecedented proportions.

In addition, the Indian scientific community will be able to work alongside the world's most advanced technological experts. India's contribution to the project will entail 9.09 per cent of the total project cost, which works out to around $500 million over a 10-year period. Indian companies will be manufacturing and building ten per cent of the total number of machines to be used. This will provide momentum to both the technological and scientific industrial community in India who are hopeful of the outcome of this project.

In terms of the physics involved, the ITER would be the first fusion device to produce thermal energy through a conventional electricity-producing power station, which would pave the way for the first prototype commercial power station. The UK's science minister, Lord Sainsbury, was quoted as saying, "Making fusion a viable energy source for mankind is an enormous scientific and technological challenge. The ITER project is an important step in making energy from fusion a reality."

However, at the moment, the challenge seems to be to make a convincing case for proceeding with the project. A number of Green Groups in Europe are protesting against the project calling it a "waste of money" and claiming that the money, if used to produce wind farms, would be put to better use. They are doubtful if the ITER can deliver on time and efficiently, and would rather see the money funding offshore wind farms that would produce 10,000 MWs of electricity; thereby supplying some 7.5 million European households. Unwilling to wait till after 2030 for results, they are supporting renewable sources of energy.

This is not the only cause of worry for those backing the ITER. Previously, the project had to be stalled on various occasions. Although the design and estimated costs of the ITER were decided upon in 2001, further progress was halted by the return of the US to the project. At this point, efforts at collaboration with Canada were aborted. In 2003, further adjustments were required by the admission of China and South Korea. At the end of 2003, the main issue of a joint implementation agreement had been resolved. But this was followed by a deadlock on the location of the project site. The dispute over choosing Europe or Japan between December 2003 and June 2005 held up further progress. This has now been decided by a joint decision on the Cadarache site, which lies about 60 km inland from Marseille, and has been a nuclear research centre ever since President Charles de Gaulle launched France's atomic energy programme in 1959.

With the agreement to construct the ITER in France, implementation of the project, which requires the ratification of the agreement and the establishment of the ITER organisation as an international legal entity, can now begin. For India, and indeed, for humanity, the promise of nuclear fusion lies in its clean power production, better than nuclear fission and fossil fuels.

Fusion energy has multiple advantages such as the availability of basic fuels, no greenhouse gas emissions, inherently safe power stations free of "meltdowns" or "runaway reactions" and long-lasting radioactive waste. This makes it imperative to consider this approach and adopt a visionary rather than a problem-solving approach. What remains uncertain is whether the ITER measures up to its promise of solving problems rather than creating new ones. For any scenario to play out, meticulous coordination and policy continuity will be required by present and future Indian governments.