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France to Nationalize Debt-Laden EDF as Energy Crisis Mounts

  • Premier says EDF full control needed for energy sovereignty
  • France to invest in new nuclear plants to fight climate change
Electricity pylons and power lines near a nuclear power plant operated by Electricite de France SA in Normandy, France, on Monday.

Electricity pylons and power lines near a nuclear power plant operated by Electricite de France SA in Normandy, France, on Monday.

Photographer: Nathan Laine/Bloomberg
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The French government will nationalize its financially struggling nuclear giant Electricite de France SA to help it ride out Europe’s worst energy crisis in a generation and invest in new atomic plants.

“The climate emergency requires strong, radical decisions,” Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said during a policy speech in parliament in Paris on Wednesday. “We need to have full control of the production and our energy future. We must ensure our sovereignty faced with the consequences of the war and the colossal challenges ahead.”