Is this the beginning of the end of the power of the oil despots?

Livermore, CA - A fusion ignition facility which uses the power of lasers to turn tiny hydrogen pellets into thermonuclear energy is to open in California today.

The device is expected to be the first to create more energy than it uses, releasing ten to 100 times more energy than the amount of laser energy required to initiate the fusion reaction.

It is hoped that the $3.5 billion National Ignition Facility (NIF) will pave the way for commercial laser fusion power stations - potentially providing clean, almost limitless energy.