Hungary to Restart a Nuclear Reactor as Danube Starts to Rise

(Bloomberg) -- Hungary will restart the first of three nuclear reactors it was forced to shut down due to the record low level of the Danube river, as the country looks to recover from an unprecedented energy crisis.

Authorities will restart block number 3 at its Paks nuclear plant Saturday evening, Prime Minister Peter Magyar said in a Facebook post. He credited rising river levels and emergency measures such as the construction of an underwater barrier in the river.

Rolling heat waves over the summer have dried up waterways across Europe, severely impacting Danube river flows and hindering the cooling systems at nuclear reactors. That has strained power grids, forcing Hungary to boost electricity imports and to ask both households and factories to voluntarily cut back on energy use.

Paks, which generates around 40% of Hungary’s electricity output, saw its output drop to as little as a tenth of its 2,000-megawatt capacity at one point, with only one of its four reactors running. It’s currently producing 481 megawatts.

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