Romanian ‌state-owned nuclear power producer Nuclearelectrica has started the process of disconnecting its sole working reactor ‌from the power grid due to record low Danube river levels, it said on ​Thursday.The drought-hit river already forced it to shut down one reactor in late July. The company has two 706-megawatt reactors in Cernavoda on the Danube, accounting for ​a fifth of the country’s power output.Romania has declared a state of energy emergency ⁠throughout August and asked companies and households to voluntarily reduce consumption during ‌peak ‌evening ​hours. The energy ministry has turned on a 330-megawatt lignite-fired power plant, it said, adding it was ⁠also relying on increased wind ​generation and hydro power, based on ​available water in reservoirs, to make up for the shortages.Given slightly ‌cooler temperatures, power demand at ​peak evening hours was expected to be lower, it said. “The national ⁠power grid has a cross-border ⁠capacity of ​roughly 4,000 megawatts to enable electricity imports,” the ministry said in a statement. “All European operators know the regional energy crisis situations and are co-ordinating to ensure safety in supplying all the grids hurt by weather conditions.”The government has prepared a system to cut power for industrial consumers in stages and with ‌prior notice if ⁠needed. It had sought to avoid closing the reactor through unprecedented measures, including detonating a rock obstruction, dredging the riverbed and ‌sinking rock-filled barges in the Danube to redirect flows to around the power plant. Europe ​has suffered weeks of record-breaking heat and destructive wildfires ​this summer, placing enormous pressure on power supply, shipping and public health systems. – Reuters