Greece Moves to Formally Evaluate Nuclear Energy for the First Time
Greece is taking its first formal steps toward evaluating nuclear energy, with the government announcing plans to build an institutional framework for assessing the technology. Deputy Environment and Energy Minister Nikos Tsafos made the announcement Tuesday at a conference in Athens focused on the future of nuclear technology in Greece.
Tsafos was clear that Greece is not making any decision to build nuclear plants right now. The goal of this first phase, he said, is simply to answer one foundational question: does Greece want to pursue nuclear energy or not. A preliminary roadmap outlining how that evaluation will unfold is expected before the next national elections.
"Nuclear is the only solution" to future energy challenges — Cambridge professor Athanasios Fokas
The ministry plans to adapt the institutional model recommended by the International Atomic Energy Agency to Greek conditions. That structure would examine the regulatory framework, public acceptance, economic parameters, and the needs of the electricity grid.
Tsafos pointed to the volatility of renewables as the core challenge driving the conversation. Wind generation in Greece can swing from 2% to 78% of installed capacity in a single day, while solar ranges from 2.6% to 54%. Right now the country fills that gap with natural gas, essentially running a parallel backup system, and nuclear could eventually reduce the overall cost of that balancing act.
He also noted that Greece has already completed a dramatic energy transition. The country went from generating 73% of its electricity from lignite in the late 1980s to cutting lignite production by 92%, which helped Greece reach the seventh lowest wholesale electricity price in Europe this year after being among the most expensive markets in 2019.
Other speakers at the conference pushed the case further. Cambridge professor and Athens Academy vice president Athanasios Fokas called nuclear "the only solution" to future energy challenges. The head of Athlos Energy, Stathis Vlassopoulos, said his company is actively working toward developing Greece's first nuclear plant and plans to present feasibility studies within weeks.
