Budapest, August 23: Hungary’s Prime Minister, Peter Szijjarto, announced that the turbine 6 of Unit 3 at the Paks Nuclear Power Plant has been restarted. This development was made possible due to emergency construction efforts and improved conditions for cooling the reactor, thanks to rising water levels in the Danube River.
Turbine 6 was shut down earlier this month when the Danube’s water levels hit record lows, making it challenging for the plant to draw sufficient water for cooling.
Located about 100 kilometers south of Budapest, the Paks Nuclear Power Plant houses four VVER-440 reactor units and a total of eight turbines. Typically, this facility meets nearly half of Hungary’s electricity needs, relying on the Danube River for cooling all four reactors.
Due to the significantly low water levels in late July, the plant had to drastically reduce electricity production. During the crisis, only one turbine was operational. Conditions improved slightly, allowing a second turbine to restart on August 10.
During a live broadcast from the plant on Saturday evening, Szijjarto stated, “If everything goes according to plan, by Wednesday the nuclear power plant will reach its full capacity of 2,000 megawatts. All eight turbines will be operational again, nearly a month after the first turbine was shut down.”
Last week, the government implemented several emergency measures to ensure a steady supply of cooling water for the plant. These measures included constructing a submerged dam (weir) on the Danube between Paks and Dunaszentbenedek, and carefully submerging two 80-meter barges in a section of the river.
Szijjarto noted that the partially constructed dam and the two barges have raised the water level near the plant by approximately 15 centimeters, enabling the operation of two turbines despite the low water levels in the Danube.
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