Scientists have taken the first step toward the ‘Holy Grail’ of cheap, clean, near unlimited power by harnessing the power of the sun, the U.S. Department of Energy says.“Last week, at the Lawrence Livermore National Lab in California, scientists at the National Ignition Facility achieved ‘fusion ignition,’ creating more energy from fusion reactions than the energy used to start the process,” said Granholm.“Simply put, this is one of the most impressive scientific feats of the 21st century.”“This feat is akin to the Wright brothers achieving takeoff in Kitty Hawk ... but we’re not yet ready for a transatlantic flight.”Livermore director Kim Budil, called the first ignition of a fusion reaction “a historic achievement.”“The science and technology challenges on the path to fusion energy are daunting.But the breakthrough by the Livermore scientist is only a first step in a long process — actual commercial electricity generation may still be decades away, said Budil.Now that they have succeeded in getting more energy out of the fusion process than they were putting in, scientists and engineers now face the task of designing reactors that will be more efficient and cost-effective enough to be produced commercially for energy grids."