Hungary shuts Paks nuclear plant as Danube water levels hit record lows

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Hungary shuts Paks nuclear plant as Danube water levels hit record lows
Dutch government holds emergency drought meeting as locks close and irrigation bans expand
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Record-low water levels in the Danube have forced Hungary to shut down the Paks nuclear power plant, Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced on Friday. The four reactors at the facility will be taken offline on Monday as the river’s flow is insufficient to provide the cooling water required for safe operation.
The shutdown follows similar measures in Romania, where two reactors at the Cernavoda plant are already out of service due to drought, leaving the country reliant on electricity imports. Energy expert Cosmin Gabriel Păcuraru wrote on the Contributors platform that Romania’s crisis stems from long-standing issues, including delayed investments, abandoned projects, and protracted maintenance, which the drought has exposed. “In a sector that is key to national security, this is unacceptable,” Păcuraru stated.
In Hungary, Magyar urged the public and major industrial consumers to reduce electricity and water use in the coming weeks, though he insisted the situation remains under control. The Hungarian government has also called for voluntary restrictions on water usage, including suspending irrigation, as thousands in Szentendre were left without drinking water due to system overload. The military has deployed two tanker trucks and 7,000 bottled water supplies to assist affected residents.
The Danube’s critically low levels have revealed riverbed sections never before recorded as dry, according to drone footage published by Qubiton. Hungarian Economic Minister István Kapitány celebrated a reduction in residential electricity consumption on Thursday evening as a sign of public cooperation.
Meanwhile, Népszava raised concerns about Hungary’s planned Paks 2 expansion, which would add 2,400 megawatts to the existing 2,000-megawatt capacity. “If the Danube’s flow is not even able to safely cool a 2,000-megawatt reactor, what happens when the cooling system has to cope with a total reactor capacity of 4,400 megawatts?” the publication asked.
The shutdowns add to broader energy strains across Europe, where drought and extreme heat have disrupted power generation and strained grids. In Texas, utilities are adapting to surging demand by expanding battery storage and implementing mandatory weatherization, while the Electric Reliability Council of Texas approved standards requiring large data centers to disconnect during grid disturbances to maintain stability.
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