Nuclear Energy and the Energy Transition in Shipping
As part of the 16th Hydra Shipping Conference (September 6, 2025), Marie-Athena Papathanasiou, international lawyer specializing in environmental law and member of the Advisory Committee of Komvos’ Initiative on Sustainable Tourism, presented the first results of a study on the role of nuclear energy in the energy transition of commercial shipping.
Dr. Papathanasiou, who holds a PhD in the Law of the Sea, emphasized that the study was carried out in collaboration with naval architects and engineers, underlining the need for an interdisciplinary approach to a particularly complex and technically demanding issue.
A central focus of her intervention was the exploration of whether nuclear energy can be a realistic option for the decarbonization – a term she herself prefers to avoid – of shipping. She outlined the main advantages of nuclear technology, such as its ability to replace both conventional and alternative fuels, and concentrated on applications like Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and Floating Nuclear Units, as well as innovative models such as “Reactor as a Service.”
As she pointed out, despite the technical prospects, two key challenges will determine the future role of nuclear energy in shipping: social acceptance and the regulatory–legal framework, the latter being the main focus of her own research contribution.
The study is expected to be presented in detail at the next conference of the Institute of Energy for South-East Europe (IENE), with the aim of opening the discussion on the potential integration of nuclear energy into the future energy mix of shipping. As she characteristically noted, “a scenario that only a few years ago seemed like science fiction is now increasingly considered a realistic solution, provided certain conditions are met.”
About the Conference:
The conference was organized by Τhe Fraternity of the Athenian Hydriots for the 16th consecutive year, bringing together the elite of Greek shipping. Special thanks were extended to the President of the Fraternity, John Sahinis, for the excellent organization and hospitality at the historic residence in Hydra.
Komvos expresses its gratitude to Piraeus Bank for supporting the realization of its vision.
