Hungary Keeps Paks Running at 10% Capacity as Danube Rises 1.5 Centimeters
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 4
Hungary Keeps Paks Running at 10% Capacity as Danube Rises 1.5 Centimeters
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 4
Summary
A 1.5-centimeter overnight rise in the Danube spared Hungary’s Paks nuclear plant from shutdown after water levels came within millimeters of forcing it offline around 1:30 a.m.
Paks is still running at just over 10% capacity because record-low river levels have left too little water to cool the plant properly; only the last turbine is operating safely.
Hungary’s grid has held through emergency power-saving steps, with businesses cutting peak-hour use — Lidl shifted baking schedules, switched off drink fridges and limited EV charging to before 5 p.m.
Across southeastern Europe, the same heat-and-drought crisis is straining nuclear generation: Romania reported a 2-centimeter Danube rise after a controlled blast to aid Cernavodă, with more interventions planned as temperatures top 40C.