Hungary Announces Unprecedented Shutdown of Nuclear Power Plant Due to Heat Wave
The shutdown could leave 6,000 residents without hot water and force Hungary to boost imports as officials warn of possible rolling power cuts.
- Hungary shut its sole nuclear power plant at Paks on August 2 after the Danube River hit record lows, forcing the facility to power down for the first time in its 44-year history and removing 40 per cent of the nation's electricity supply.
- Prime Minister Peter Magyar cited sustained drought across Europe and infrastructure deterioration during 16 years of Viktor Orban's rule, including delayed cooling system modernization, as underlying causes of the unprecedented shutdown.
- Laszlo Nagy, deputy director of the Paks plant, told reporters on July 31 that the situation is unprecedented, with the Danube reaching annual lows. The government boosted power imports and requested voluntary consumption cuts from industrial firms.
- Starting August 3, Budapest ordered trams and subways to run slower and turned off decorative lighting on state buildings to conserve electricity. Rail freight was halted at peak hours to mitigate grid strain.
- The crisis poses a major test for Magyar less than four months after ousting Orban, as temperatures are forecast to hit 38 deg C over the next six days with no precipitation expected.
106 Articles
106 Articles
The historically low water levels in the Danube River have triggered an energy crisis in Hungary. The Paks Nuclear Power Plant, which supplies roughly half of the country's electricity needs, has been completely shut down for the first time in 44 years due to a shortage of cooling water, and Prime Minister Péter Magyar has stated that the next five days are "critical."
Climate warming drains the great European river. In Budapest, for the first time in 44 years, the atomic plant that produces 40% of the national electricity, while in Serbia it slows down hydropower production. And from the river bed there are also...
Hungary is facing an "unprecedented energy crisis," Prime Minister Peter Magyar warns. Record-low water levels on the Danube River have forced the country's only nuclear power plant to shut down for the first time in 44 years.
The Hungarian nuclear power plant in Paks could be shut down for up to a month, Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar told RTL. The plant generates half of Hungary's energy. The reason is low water levels in the Danube River, which cools the reactors.
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