Heat and drought strain Europe's nuclear power

Europe's nuclear power generation faces significant challenges as extreme heat and critically low river levels force several countries to curtail operations. The continent's aging nuclear infrastructure, largely built in the 1970s and 80s, is struggling to cope with rising summer temperatures, raising concerns about future energy security.

Hungary has urged industries to reduce electricity consumption as its sole nuclear plant, Paks, risks shutdown due to record low water levels in the Danube River. Neighboring Romania has taken drastic measures, including breaching a canal to redirect water to its Cernavoda nuclear facility. Poland has also reduced capacity at two nuclear plants because of low water levels in the Vistula River.

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The nuclear power plants are not built for this heat.

France, heavily reliant on nuclear power for nearly 70% of its electricity, is also experiencing disruptions. State-owned EDF has shut down several reactors due to drought affecting river cooling systems. The Golfech nuclear plant faced prolonged outages because river temperatures exceeded the 28-degree Celsius limit for discharging cooling water, a regulation implemented in 2006 to protect aquatic environments.

Christophe Demazière, an expert in reactor safety, stated that nuclear power plants were not designed for the current extreme heat. He noted that while technical solutions exist to reduce water dependency, they require significant investment. The summer's outages have not led to electricity shortages in France, which continues to export power, partly due to lower summer demand.

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When these reactors were built in the 70s and 80s, people didn't think temperatures would get this high during the summer months.