Recently, the three tech giants Google, Amazon, and Microsoft decided to proceed within a few weeks of each other in signing agreements for the future purchase of nuclear energy from respective companies developing Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) to meet the energy needs of energy-intensive data centers. The shift of these tech giants towards Nuclear Energy places Greece in an advantageous position. Our country aims to become a global technological hub, and already global tech giants have established local data centers. The integration of nuclear energy into the country's energy mix could enhance this goal, as data centers require large volumes of clean and stable energy. In light of these developments, the pressing question is which other energy needs of our country could be met through the use of Nuclear Energy.

Nuclear Energy, particularly in the form of SMRs (reactors with a capacity of up to 300 MWe), seems to be an ideal choice for decarbonizing many energy-intensive sectors of the Greek economy. These sectors include (1) industrial applications such as oil refining and the cement industry, (2) transport, especially maritime transport involving tankers and cargo ships (a matter of particular interest for Greece, as Greek shipping controls 21% of the global fleet's capacity), (3) desalination, which Greece desperately needs due to increasing water scarcity, particularly on the islands, and (4) the production of green fuels such as hydrogen.

In addition to energy-intensive applications, SMRs and micro-reactors can ensure the continuous supply of clean energy to the power grid. SMRs can be used to replace old lignite-fired power plants, such as those in Ptolemaida and Megalopolis (as proposed through the Phoenix program, an initiative of the U.S. federal government), to produce clean base-load electricity and provide auxiliary support for power-variable RES. At the same time, micro-reactors (reactors with a capacity of up to 10 MWe) can supply electricity to remote areas of the Greek territory, such as various Greek islands.

Tackling the climate crisis, ensuring energy security, and achieving a fair transition necessitate modernizing our approach to clean energy sources, which must include Nuclear Energy if Greece wants to become an energy-exporting hub and take a leading role in the energy developments of the Eastern Mediterranean.