Not even 24 hours had passed since he had signed his contract when Osamu Motojima, the new Director-General of the ITER Organization addressed his team - by now counting more than 700 people. In his address he thanked his predecessor Kaname Ikeda for his contribution to the project and especially for finalizing the Baseline that was approved yesterday at an extraordinary meeting of the ITER Council.

A fusion scientist himself, DG Motojima said he was very proud to lead the ITER project, but that he was also aware of the huge responsibility he had undertaken. "The world is watching us," he said. "The role of the ITER project is very important in order to show that fusion energy is an achievable goal." 

In his inaugural address, he also introduced the new management structure of the Organization and his strategy for cost containment, following a request by the ITER Members. His recipe to meet cost containment goals? Simplicity.