The Greek royal family is given a tour of the nuclear reactor of the National Center for Scientific Research, Demokritos, on the day of its inauguration, on July 31, 1961. In previous years, Queen Frederica had toured the largest nuclear laboratories in the US, leading Time magazine to call her the ‘atomic queen.’
In the early 1950s, thanks to the persistence of the Athens Polytechnic physics professor Theodoros Kougioumzelis, Greece became a founding member of European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). The negotiations were conducted by physics professors Dimitris Chondros and Nikolaos Embeirikos.
The United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) conducted research and identified uranium deposits in Evros, Serres and Kilkis, in northern Greece. In 1954, the Greek government of Alexandros Papagos founded the Hellenic Atomic Energy Commission (HAEC). Greece then joined US president Dwight D. Eisenhower’s initiative, “Atoms for Peace,” and Admiral Thanos Spanidis assumed the presidency of the HAEC, putting forward the plan for the creation of the National Center for Scientific Research, Demokritos (founded in 1968).
It was only been a few years since Greece had emerged from the destruction of the Civil War and the German occupation, but it was taking the first steps toward the transition to the atomic era.
In the book, “Atomic Age: Nuclear Energy, Reactors and Uranium in 20th Century Greece,” (Papadopoulos Press), author Achilleas Hekimoglou delivers an exhaustive study with hilarious incidents and unknown documents, which was based on a series of interviews and research in Greek and foreign archives. The research reveals that there have been many milestones, mistakes and missed opportunities in Greece in developing nuclear energy.
1955-1960
The ‘Atomic Queen’
In the second half of the 1950s, the Hellenic Atomic Energy Commission selects AMF as the supplier of the nuclear reactor in Demokritos. The Public Power Corporation (PPC) – Greece’s public power utility – sends its executives to the US for further training in nuclear energy, and industrialist Prodromos Bodosakis-Athanasiadis expresses interest in the exploitation of uranium in Greece. At the same time, the construction of Demokritos begins. The then-Queen of Greece, Frederica, toured the largest nuclear laboratories in the US – leading Time magazine to describe her as the “Atomic Queen” – and networked with the US nuclear elite.
1961
We press the button
There is a landmark date in Hekimoglou’s book. On July 27, 1961, at 9.41 pm, the nuclear reactor in Demokritos becomes critical, goes into operation and Greece enters the atomic era. “Themis Kanellopoulos takes over as scientific director of the research center. He enters into international collaborations and promotes the creation of a Center for Advanced Physical Studies, which is under the protection of Queen Frederica and offers postgraduate studies, breaking the monopoly of the universities,” the author tells Kathimerini. “In parallel with the [EU] accession negotiations, Athens is discussing its accession to Euratom. Demokritos produces radioisotopes and designs applications of nuclear technology for use in industry, construction and agriculture.”
1964
Athens calls London
The Center Union liberal government removes Spanidis from Demokritos and replaces him with professor Leonidas Zervas. Thus begins the gradual “demolition” of the research center in reaction to the royal support it enjoyed. Kanellopoulos leaves. The Americans propose the creation of a unit that combines nuclear energy and desalination. Industry Minister Ioannis Toumbas begins direct negotiations with the British for the creation of a nuclear plant, bypassing the Public Power Corporation, but talks halt.
1967
Tobacco instead of nuclear power
Dictator Georgios Papadopoulos assumes responsibility for the HAEC. Negotiations begin between the military junta and the British for an agreement to exchange tobacco for a nuclear power plant, which collapses. The United Nations finances uranium research in Greece and the PPC predicts at the time that, by 2000, half of the country’s energy will be produced by 15 nuclear power plants. PPC makes a deal with Ex-Im Bank (Export-Import Bank) and US contractor Overseas Bechtel for the creation of a nuclear power plant in the country. At the same time, the Greek anti-nuclear movement is born in Lavrio, to be followed by the first energy crisis.
1974-1981
White paper and plans
After the restoration of democracy, the national unity government overturns the agreements signed by the junta, and prime minister Konstantinos Karamanlis establishes the National Energy Council (NEC), appointing MIT professor Elias Gyftopoulos as its chairman. “The NEC prepares the first white paper on energy, foreseeing a strong share of nuclear power in Greece’s energy mix. Research into uranium intensifies, while the anti-nuclear movement strengthens,” says Hekimoglou. “The nuclear program foresees a new nuclear unit every year after 1987 and US-based engineering and construction firm Ebasco takes over as a consultant to PPC. The 1981 earthquakes raise concerns about the possibility of installing a nuclear power plant. Ebasco suggests Larissa and Karystos [in Evia] as the most likely areas for the creation of a nuclear power plant.”
1981-1986
Turning to gas
The first government of Andreas Papandreou terminates the Ebasco contract and halts the nuclear program, but continues research into uranium. PPC removes nuclear energy from its planning. In Drama, the Institute of Geological and Mining Research (IGME) creates a uranium processing unit. But the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 buries any idea of using nuclear energy. Athens signs agreements with the USSR and Algeria for the use of natural gas, which replaces nuclear energy in the country’s planning.
2026
With an eye on 2050
The conversation is reopening, after Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stated at the Nuclear Energy Summit in Paris that small modular reactors (SMRs) can meet the growing demand for electricity and help Greece wean itself off coal. “Despite the fact that large investments in storage and networks have been launched by the market that will make renewable energy sources even more powerful, we rely on natural gas as the base fuel, which is volatile in geopolitical turmoil. The increased cost is borne by the country’s households and businesses, while the country’s balance of payments is also disproportionately burdened,” Hekimoglou says. He notes that the Greek geographical and productive constitution may indeed constitute ripe ground for SMRs, as industrial areas, non-interconnected areas or large consumption centers may be suitable to welcome such investments.
What about earthquakes and waste
There is always the example of France. Charisis-Sotirios Chatzigogos is a civil engineer specializing in earthquake-resistant geotechnical engineering. He works for the French consulting firm Géodynamique & Structure, whose main field is the preparation of earthquake-resistant studies for sensitive industrial infrastructure, including nuclear power plants in France.
“Most nuclear facilities were built in the 1970s and 1980s and are scattered throughout the country. There are 18 nuclear power plants, each of which includes two to six production units. The operator of the plants is the French electricity company (EDF), while the safety rules are imposed by the nuclear safety regulator (ASNR),” says Chatzigogos. According to the French safety protocol, every 10 years all studies and safety levels are reviewed, including the seismic protection of nuclear facilities’ buildings. “It’s a process that takes place in perpetuity. The most important thing is that the know-how is preserved and passed on from one generation of engineers to the next,” he explains.
One of the arguments of nuclear energy skeptics is the high seismicity in Greece. It was already formulated by the anti-nuclear movement in the early years after the restoration of democracy, while the 1981 earthquakes intensified concerns about the possibility of installing a nuclear power plant. The discussion is important in a country whose state apparatus does not properly maintain public infrastructure. An earthquake, say engineers, is the natural phenomenon that reveals all the flaws in a construction – all our sins.
Chatzigogos is reassuring, noting that countries as seismically active as Greece have installed nuclear plants. “The technologies exist. With SMRs, things are technically easier, because they are small units, so their seismic calculation and protection are simpler. Serious studies are required, but the know-how exists,” he says.
At the same time, a second issue is the management of nuclear waste. During the final storage phase, the waste will be buried hundreds of meters deep, at a point where it has been certified that there is a healthy geological formation without geological faults. Vertical shafts are opened and then horizontal “branches” – that is, tunnels – which are shielded with concrete and filling materials, to ensure that there will be no leaks. In addition to the nuclear facilities, engineers in France are also conducting studies on the underground structures in which the final disposal of nuclear waste will take place. “Studies are being carried out, calculating the seismic activity, the behavior of the materials and the way in which the underground structures must be designed so that they respond correctly. The waste must remain safe down there for thousands of years,” says Chatzigogos.
Apart from the arguments of engineers, there is a part of the nuclear debate that concerns the future. In France, there is a debate about the marking of places where nuclear waste will be permanently buried. Some people say, you can’t just write a sign with today’s syntax and spelling saying, “there is nuclear waste here.” Because it is not entirely certain that this message will be understandable many generations later.