Romania detonated a river rock on the Danube to divert water and prevent overheating at its main nuclear power plant. It comes as the region struggles with severe drought and intense heat.
The emergency operation was to direct enough water to the Cernavoda nuclear facility, which was severely short on water because of the river’s historically low levels. To allow water to reach the plant’s cooling systems, military engineers used explosives to breach the dam upstream.
The authorities said the move was crucial to preventing possible blackouts in Romania and neighbouring Hungary, which depend on Romanian energy exports. The Danube has dropped significantly after a long spell of dry weather and a string of heatwaves across Europe.
Romania’s Cernavoda nuclear power plant is especially vulnerable because it relies on the Danube to cool its reactors. Concerns about the facility’s capacity to function safely have grown as water levels have dropped, leading to drastic actions like this week’s dam blast to guarantee the continuation of energy supplies.
Why the Danube matters for Europe
The second-longest river in Europe, the Danube has long been important for energy production, transportation, and agriculture in several nations. But recently, climate change has put it under unprecedented strain, with extended droughts and high temperatures reducing its flow and affecting millions of people who depend on it.
In Hungary’s capital Budapest, it was only 10 centimetres, and the previous record low was 33 centimetres in 2018. The forecast does not call for any significant rainfall while a new heat wave is affecting the region with temperatures up to 38 degrees Celsius.
Hungary’s only nuclear power station, the Soviet-era Paks with four reactors, is facing a complete shutdown for the first time in its 44-year history because of a water shortage.
Paks, which also uses Danube water to cool its reactors, produced only 240 megawatts of power Monday, down from 2,000 megawatts in typical conditions.
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