CEA Identity and organisation

What is the CEA ?

The CEA is the French Atomic Energy Commission (Commissariat à l'énergie atomique). It is a public body established in October 1945 by General de Gaulle. A leader in research, development and innovation, the CEA mission statement has two main objectives : To become the leading technological research organization in Europe and to ensure that the nuclear deterrent remains effective in the future.

What does the CEA do ?

The CEA is active in three main fields : Energy, information and health technologies, and defense and national security. In each of these fields, the CEA maintains a cross-disciplinary culture of engineers and researchers, building on the synergies between fundamental and technological research.

How many people work for the CEA ?

In 2006, the total CEA workforce consisted of 14 910 employees (52 % of whom were in management grades). Across the whole of the CEA (including both civilian and military research), there were 1,017 PhD students and 278 post-docs.

Where does the CEA get its funding ?

In 2004, the civilian programs of the CEA received 55 % of their funding from the French government, and 35 % from external sources (partner companies and the European Union). The remaining 10 % was provided from a fund dedicated to the decommissioning and clean-up of civilian nuclear plants. The military programs are mainly funded directly by the French Ministry of Defense.

What is the budget of the CEA ?

In 2006, the CEA had a budget of 3 210 million euros.

CEA News sept. 2007 (2.15 MB)

Some key figures for the CEA in 2006 :

• 15 332 employees
• 9 research centers
• Budget of 3.3 billion euros
• 346 licensing patents
• 97 new companies established since 1984 in the high-technologiy sector
• 65 joint research units (UMR) linking the CEA and its research partners.
• 65 correspondent research laboratories (LRC) associated with the CEA.