The Ministry of Energy announced that Bulgaria will be the last European country to reduce electricity production at nuclear power plants on Friday. This is due to the continent's record drought conditions.
The Kozloduy state power plant, which supplies more than a third of the country's total electricity, uses water from the Danube River for cooling. Each of the two reactors at this facility has a capacity of 1000 megawatts.
A statement from the ministry on Thursday indicated that due to the 'unprecedented and critical' drop in the Danube's water level, the station will reduce the output of one of its reactors by approximately 120 megawatts. This reduction is aimed at ensuring the safe operation of the plant.
The ministry added that forecasts for the river upstream from Bulgaria 'continue to show a downward trend.' According to the ministry, this is the first time the station's output has been reduced due to 'extreme weather and hydrological conditions' since its launch 52 years ago.
Romania and Hungary have also recorded recent reductions in nuclear energy generation due to low Danube levels. Romania completely shut down the Cernavodă plant on August 13, which usually produces one-fifth of its electricity.
Meanwhile, Hungary is making efforts to avoid a complete shutdown of its Paks plant, which significantly reduced output since late July. Work has been carried out to maintain the plant's operation, including building a weir in the riverbed and partially submerging two barges loaded with stones to raise the water level.
Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar stated on Thursday that the plant will resume running turbines on Sunday, and it is expected to return to full generation next week.
In other parts of Europe, the Beznau nuclear power plant in northern Switzerland was shut down in June due to high river water temperatures, and France has also reduced output at several reactors due to a heatwave.
Experts note that the drought in Europe is exacerbated by anthropogenic climate change, warning that this problem will only intensify.