France Regularly Loses Its Hafnium - The Stuff Used in Nuclear Control Rods and Aerospace

Hafnium is separated as a by-product during the production of nuclear-grade zirconium, the alloy used for the cladding tubes that contain uranium fuel pellets. Because of its high neutron-absorption cross-section it is also used in control rods, including those on naval reactors.

It appears in certain high-temperature alloys for aerospace applications.

Global annual production of refined hafnium is limited (on the order of 70–80 tonnes).

Prices have risen sharply over the past two years, reaching roughly €9,000–11,000 per kilogram depending on the exact quotation.

The October raid was rapid.

A temporary night-shift worker was on site and did not intervene.

Four vehicles later found burned out in the department are believed to have been used. The Grenoble prosecutor’s office has opened a preliminary investigation entrusted to the gendarmerie’s Section de Recherches. No arrests linked to this specific theft have been announced.

In August 2026 a team leader from the same plant was arrested after more than 150 kg of hafnium and approximately €500,000 in cash were found at his home. That quantity had disappeared from the site earlier in the summer.

The case remains the only instance in which a substantial amount of the stolen material has been recovered and publicly accounted for.

The destination of the other batches, including the latest one, remains a mystery.

Could be anything. Iran, perhaps.

France’s only hafnium refinery has now been robbed six times in seven years. At this point, the thieves are the only people who seem to have a reliable system for keeping track of the stuff.