Hungary and Romania have cut nuclear power output as record-low river levels disrupted shipping and supply chains
The disastrous heatwave and drought across Europe have pushed the Rhine and Danube rivers to historic water lows, forcing two EU countries into atomic energy power-downs while disrupting industrial output and major trade routes.
The Rhine and Danube serve as vital commercial corridors, historic borders and a continuous navigable link between the North Sea and the Black Sea. Many European power plants rely on the rivers for cooling water, and that is why record-low levels have sharply reduced electricity output.
Hungary faces ‘unprecedented’ energy crunch
The Danube, which flows through or borders ten countries from southwestern Germany to the Black Sea, has reached historically low levels this July. In Budapest, the river fell to a record-low of 23 cm on Thursday, 10 cm below the previous record set in 2018, according to Hungary’s official water-monitoring service.
Hungary’s Paks nuclear plant, the country’s largest source of domestic power, generating nearly half of its electricity, was forced to cut output at three of its four reactors, reducing production to about 60% of capacity. On Thursday, Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar warned the plant could be shut down altogether within 24 to 72 hours “for the first time in 44 years,” because its cooling-water intake nozzles can no longer reach the receding Danube.
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