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.
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.
In 2006, the total CEA workforce consisted of 15 332 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.
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. In 2006, the CEA had a budget of 3.3 billion euros.