Hungary PM flags "critical" days ahead with looming nuclear shutdown

BUDAPEST, Aug 2 - Hungary faces a critical five days, Prime Minister Peter Magyar said on Sunday, as the drying out of the Danube forces the country's sole nuclear power plant to shut for the first time in over four decades, with a new heatwave looming.

Large parts of Europe have been hit by prolonged heat and drought, lowering river levels and raising concerns about water supplies, river transport and power generation.

Hungary's 2 gigawatt Paks power plant, which runs four Russian-built reactors, was operating at just over 10% of its total capacity on Sunday after the Danube, whose waters it uses as a coolant, fell to a record low.

The water authority was projecting that the level of the river, which flows from Germany to the Black Sea, would drop further in the coming days.

"We are facing the most critical five days ahead," Magyar said in a Facebook video. "Tomorrow, the Paks power plant will not be generating, while the hottest, 40-degree (Celsius, 104 Fahrenheit) days are ahead.

"The power grid, our public services and ourselves will all come under enormous strain," said Magyar, who has warned that Paks could remain idle for weeks.

Falls in water levels have also disrupted shipping and tourism in Hungary and triggered water-use restrictions in more than 100 cities and villages, including on the outskirts of Budapest, according to government records.

Magyar reiterated a call for companies, public institutions, local governments and households to significantly reduce or reschedule electricity use during evening peak hours between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m.

The government will decide on Sunday whether to apply mandatory electricity use restrictions for large companies from Monday, he said.

The crisis could cost Hungary 100 billion to 200 billion forints ($315 million to $630 million) due to the surging price of imported electricity, Mark Radnai, vice chairman of Magyar's Tisza party, said on Facebook. REUTERS