On a Monday in early August, the Danube at Budapest sank to about ten centimetres, far below its previous record low of 2018, and the river that has long carried Central Europe's commerce and cooled its machinery is now failing the very power plants that depend on it. In Hungary, the Paks nuclear station, built to hum for decades on the river's water, is edging toward its first complete shutdown in forty-four years, while Serbia and Romania confront similar strain. Drought and relentless heat have turned a familiar summer dependence on a great waterway into a test of how much a region can ask
Record-low Danube forces Hungary's Paks nuclear plant toward shutdown as Central European grids strain
On a Monday in early August, the Danube at Budapest sank to about ten centimetres, far below its previous record low of 2018, and the river that has long carried Central Europe's commerce and cooled its machinery is now failing the very power plants that depend on it. In Hungary, the Paks nuclear station, built to hum for decades on the river's water, is edging toward its first complete shutdown in forty-four years, while Serbia and Romania confront similar strain. Drought and relentless heat have turned a familiar summer dependence on a great waterway into a test of how much a region can ask of its own infrastructure, and of how quickly a people can learn to live with less.
On Monday the Danube at Budapest stood at about ten centimetres, far below the 2018 low of 33, and the drought and punishing heat that have drained one of Europe's great rivers are now pulling power plants toward shutdown across the region. The most striking case is Paks, Hungary's only nuclear station, which draws river water to cool its reactors. Its reactors have been switched off one by one, and on Monday it produced just 240 megawatts against a usual 2,000. Prime Minister Peter Magyar said engineers had kept the last turbine running, averting a weekend shutdown, though a full power-down will probably come on Tuesday or Wednesday.
Paks supplies nearly half of Hungary's electricity, so the government has leaned on imports and renewables while asking large industrial users and households to cut consumption during evening peak hours. Electric freight trains have been barred from running at peak times, and a decree now allows mandatory cuts for big consumers. Magyar credited these efforts with trimming demand by 700 megawatts the previous day.
The pressure reaches well beyond Hungary. In Serbia, the main hydroelectric plant runs at 20 per cent capacity, and officials warn that the river may soon be too low for shipping. Romania has shut a reactor unit at Cernavoda for safety reasons and is running at about half its normal output. Relief is not in sight, since no significant rain is forecast and temperatures are rising again. Whether Paks's last turbine holds will be the first sign of how deep the crisis goes.
On Monday, the Danube at Budapest stood at about 10 centimetres, a reading that sits far below the previous all-time low of 33 centimetres, recorded in 2018. Persistent drought and a string of extreme heat waves have drained one of Europe's largest rivers, and governments across Central and Eastern Europe are now scrambling to conserve electricity as power plants that depend on the river edge toward shutdown.
Nowhere is that clearer than at Paks, Hungary's only nuclear power plant. The Soviet-built, four-reactor station draws Danube water to cool its reactors, and it is now close to powering down completely for the first time in its 44 years of service. On Monday it was producing just 240 megawatts, against a usual output of 2,000, after its reactors were taken offline one after another.
Prime Minister Peter Magyar addressed the situation in a Facebook video on Monday. He said engineers had managed to keep the plant's last operating turbine running for now, which averted a shutdown that had been expected over the weekend. A full power-down will probably come on Tuesday or Wednesday, he said. In his words, the delay is very good news because a total shutdown can still be avoided, at least temporarily, on one of the biggest consumption days.
The stakes are considerable. Paks sits about 90 kilometres south of Budapest and supplies nearly half of the electricity Hungary produces and around a third of what it consumes. To cover the shortfall, the country has leaned on regional electricity imports and on renewable sources.
The government has also tried to cut demand. Last week it asked major industrial users to reduce their consumption and requested voluntary savings from households, especially during peak hours between 5 pm and 10 pm. Beginning Monday, electric-powered freight trains were barred from running at peak times, a step meant to save an estimated 70 to 90 megawatt-hours a day. The measures began as voluntary, but on Saturday Magyar's government issued a decree allowing them to be made mandatory for large industrial or commercial consumers. Magyar said Monday that the previous day's consumption had been 700 megawatts lower as a result, and he thanked Hungarians for their efforts.
The pressure is regional. In Serbia, the record-low river has forced the country's key hydroelectric plant to run at only 20 per cent of capacity. Prime Minister Djuro Macut chaired an emergency meeting on energy on Monday, after calling the situation "serious and demanding" in a statement late Sunday. He urged residents to minimise the use of big electricity consumers at home, air conditioners among them. President Aleksandar Vucic has predicted that the Danube could become too low for river transport within days. Cargo ships can still move for now, but they must carry 50 per cent less weight than usual.
In Romania, the Danube's flow has dropped to 1,500 cubic metres per second, less than a third of its July average. Authorities shut down a reactor unit at the Cernavoda power plant for safety reasons, with further power-downs planned, and the plant is running at about half its normal capacity. Shipping and agriculture have also been disrupted in the region.
Relief does not appear close. No significant rainfall is forecast, so water levels are not expected to rise for days or even weeks, while a renewed heat wave with daytime highs above 38 Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) is pushing electricity and water use upward. Hungary's decision on Tuesday or Wednesday, and whether Paks's last turbine holds, will be the first measure of how deep this goes.
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Climate & Environment