Romania has taken an unprecedented step to divert water from the largely dry Danube to cool the country’s only nuclear reactor, blasting out a rock outcrop, Reuters reports.
The rock blasting underscores the scale of the energy crisis looming over the region. In neighboring Hungary, authorities said they would try to generate electricity from the Paks nuclear power plant for two more days. It also uses water from the Danube for cooling.
Heat and a prolonged dry spell have lowered river levels in many parts of Europe, raising concerns about water supplies, river traffic and energy production.
Both the Romanian and Hungarian governments have urged citizens and businesses to reduce electricity consumption. Romanian carmakers Dacia and Ford have agreed to stop work until the 19th of August, voluntarily reducing their electricity consumption by about 200 megawatts. Romanian Prime Minister Illie Bolojan said the drought-related problems were compounded by limited cross-border connections with central and western European countries and limited import capacity.
Romania’s state-owned nuclear power producer
Nuclearelectrica normally produces about a fifth of the country’s electricity,
but it shut down one of its two reactors last week when the water level in the Danube dropped.
The rock blasting will allow the construction of a temporary dam to divert more water into a channel that carries water to cool the reactor. The work is expected to be completed by August 5. Romanian Defense Minister Radu Miruta said that every day of operation at the plant was worth more than the cost of the blasting operation.
Upstream, in Hungary, the Paks NPP could continue to operate at reduced capacity on Tuesday. Paks normally produces about half of the country’s electricity, and on Monday, when the Danube’s water level fell to a record low, it was operating at just 10% of its capacity. Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar said the plant might be able to continue operating on the 4th of August, saying it was good news that it had avoided a complete shutdown on peak days. He added that the water level forecast for the coming days was a bit more optimistic. Magyar said that demand had fallen by 700 megawatts on Sunday, following a government call for voluntary cuts in electricity consumption, significantly easing pressure on the grid. Pharmaceutical company Richter announced on the 3rd of August that it would reduce its electricity consumption by 50% over the next three weeks and offered to channel electricity generated by its solar park into the national grid.
Read also: Hungary to shut down nuclear power plant due to low water level in Danube
Read also: Romania increases bear hunting quotas; enforcement gaps remain
The post Romania blasts rocks to divert water for nuclear power plant cooling appeared first on Baltic News Network.
