Greek shipowners are ready to advance the use of nuclear power in the maritime sector, as agreed during the Argo: New Nuclear for Greek Maritime Summit, which was held in Athens.
More than 120 high-level industry leaders welcomed the faster pace of progress in bringing nuclear power to shipping, from commercial fleets to floating nuclear power plants (FNPPs).
“Nuclear energy is stepping forward as a credible long-term solution,” stated Christopher Wiernicki, Chairman and CEO of the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), addressing the summit of Greek shipowners.
Opening the conference, Charlotte Vere, Group Head of Market Development for CORE POWER, highlighted the importance of Greek shipping in shaping the future of the industry. Greek shipowners are among the top three worldwide, controlling 21 percent of global tonnage, and shipping continues to be Greece’s most important industry.
“For generations, Greek shipowners have led the industry at pivotal moments in the history of shipping, leveraging their collective expertise, innovation, and resilience,” Vere said. “Now we are at another inflection point, as the industry strives to deliver improved efficiencies in the face of carbon and other emission levies.”
“We are so pleased that the innovators in the Greek shipping industry are working with us and other leading industry players on pathways to deliver nuclear for maritime,” said Vere.
Nuclear power a “superior pathway,” say Greek shipowners
Thomas Davies, Director of Analytics for CORE POWER, explained that, “Nuclear is no longer a speculative option; it is emerging as a commercially rational and operationally superior pathway for shipowners navigating an uncertain energy future.”
“Nuclear has by far the highest capacity factor out of all electricity generation methods,” added Ioannis Kourasis, Senior Nuclear Engineer at CORE POWER, as he went on to explain that “nuclear gives the reliability to be the workhorse of the grid.”
Chris Leontopoulos of ABS Hellas, Dionysis Chionis from ATHLOS Energy, Afroditi Xydi of DEON Policy Institute, and Aspasia Petri from the Greek Atomic Energy Commission discussed FNPPs and their application as a potential energy solution for Greece.
After the summit, Xydi commented:
“I think it is very encouraging that this conversation is taking place in Greece, not only on the topic of nuclear but also on the topic of floating power plants. As a leading maritime nation, Greece has the opportunity to leverage an emerging interest in nuclear to create the ships and power plants of the future.”
CORE POWER, ABS Hellas, and ATHLOS Energy are working on a project to explore the potential of deploying FNPPs in the Mediterranean Sea. The joint effort will assess how floating nuclear—powered by small modular reactors—can address growing energy demand in remote and coastal areas of the Mediterranean. This includes supplying grid-scale electricity to islands, supporting zero-emission port operations, and powering desalination plants to provide potable water in drought-affected regions.
The Greek shipowners have realized that advanced nuclear technologies open new possibilities in maritime, from powering large commercial vessels to supporting offshore platforms, port electrification, and energy access for remote coastal regions.
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