BudapestReuters —
Hungary’s Paks nuclear power plant, which generates nearly half of the country’s electricity, could be powered down as soon as this weekend due to record-low water levels on the Danube River, Prime Minister Peter Magyar said on Saturday.
Paks’ four Russian-made reactors are operating at just a quarter of their combined 2-gigawatt capacity and were expected to be powered down completely for the first time in 44 years next week amid a further projected decline in water levels.
Water from the Danube is used to cool the facility and falls in water levels amid a lack of rain have also created disruptions in shipping and tourism. The cuts could also hit the wider economy, which grew less than forecast in the second quarter.
“The Danube’s water level has declined further,” Magyar said in a Facebook video. “Therefore, engineers at the Paks plant have implemented another round of output reductions overnight.”
