Record-low Danube shuts down Paks, and the Commission weighs an emergency meeting on power supply

The Paks nuclear plant, which supplies almost half of Hungary's electricity, was taken offline after record-low water levels in the Danube knocked out its cooling, the first complete shutdown in the plant's 42 years. Commission spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen said on July 31 that the Commission stands ready to convene an ad hoc meeting of the Electricity Coordination Group, since an event of this kind could further strain the regional electricity balance. Prime Minister Péter Magyar warned of an energy crisis as early as next week, said 2,000 megawatts would be lost from Monday, and asked households and businesses to cut consumption between 5pm and 10pm.

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