Paris begins nationalizing giant EDF

France on Tuesday launched the full acquisition of the debt-laden National Electricity Company, which will lead efforts to relaunch the country’s nuclear reactor industry. The French state, which currently owns 84 percent of EDF, submitted the acquisition offer to the Financial Markets Regulatory Authority, which is the first step to remove the shares of “Electricité de France” from the stock exchange. The French government indicated in July its intention to own 100 percent of the company’s capital. The government hopes the move will help rekindle confidence in the company, which has accumulated debts of 60 billion euros, as the government plans to build six modern-generation nuclear reactors. The state offers 12 euros per share