France’s state-controlled nuclear operator EDF and Paris-based multinational Veolia have formed a joint venture called Graphitech in response to the challenges of nuclear decommissioning of reactors that incorporate graphite technology.EDF has operated eight graphite reactor units in France, all of which have been permanently shut down. Its subsidiary EDF Energy operates 14 units in the UK at Dungeness, Hartlepool, Heysham, Hinkley Point, Hunterston and Torness, and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority owns 27 shut-down units formerly operated by Magnox and the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority.