Greece will examine the prospect of adding nuclear power in its existing energy mix, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Tuesday, as EU leaders scramble to tackle soaring energy prices due to the war in Iran.
“It is time for my country to explore whether nuclear energy and specifically small modular reactors can play a role in the Greek energy system,” he said in a speech at an event on nuclear energy held in Paris, adding that the government will set up a high-level ministerial committee to make a “definitive recommendation” on this issue.
“This is a common sense position. Nuclear energy is changing quickly, there are rapid advances in technology. There is tremendous innovation. And we know that our need for electricity is only going to grow. So no matter how much we expand renewables, we will need long-term predictable base load power. And no technology can match what nuclear can offer us,” he told the Nuclear Energy Summit.
Mitsotakis acknowledged that any plan to develop nuclear energy units in Greece would likely face backlash. “We know that nuclear power presents challenges. Public opinion in Greece, as in other countries, is still divided. But I think we need to have an honest, thoughtful, non-ideological dialogue,” he said.
The Greek premier described Europe’s decision over the past years to turn away from nuclear power as “one of the biggest strategic mistakes,” and an “own goal.”
He said that, in two decades, nuclear output in the EU had declined by 276 terawatt-hour (TWh), while in 2023the European Union’s total solar output was 254 TWh. “So all the solar panels that we have installed in the EU over the past 20 years did not even make up for the loss of nuclear [power],” he said.
“But the tide is turning, nuclear energy is clearly having a comeback. Countries with nuclear power wanting to build more reactors and countries that abandoned nuclear power are re-examining their position. And this is a welcome shift.”
Mitsotakis also called for the development of nuclear energy in the maritime sector. “It’s a topic Greece cares a lot about,” he said. “This is a proven technology that is already used for decades in the military, and other niche applications. At this point, we have no credible solution to decarbonize shipping. Nuclear should be part of this conversation as well.”
He said this is a topic that Greece plans to lead separately on whether nuclear might have a role to play within the country’s energy system.
“This is a major day for Greece, we are writing a new chapter. Please consider Greece to be a friend of nuclear energy. Whether nuclear will end up playing a role in Greece remains to be seen, but at a time of great geopolitical upheaval all options must be on the table, and out task is to make nuclear part of the solution again.”