Paks nuclear plant winds down amid historic Danube low, as far right urges Hungarians to defy calls for energy saving
by https://euobserver.com/author/agoston-renczes/ · EUobserverUnlock article and share
By Ágoston Renczes,
Budapest
,
A historic drought and record-low water levels in the Danube have pushed Hungary into an energy crisis that is rapidly escalating into a political confrontation, with the far right urging supporters to consume more electricity in defiance of government appeals for energy-saving.
After weeks of headlines focused on the Tisza government’s reforms, impeachment of senior officials, and the increasingly visible struggles of former prime minister Viktor Orban’s Fidesz party,. attention has shifted to the heat dome, the energy crisis, and water shortages triggered by extreme drought and a historic drop in the Danube River’s water levels.
Prime minister Péter Magyar last week announced emergency measures to review and potentially restrict the electricity and water consumption of large industrial consumers that are not public-service entities. He also asked residents to try to reduce their energy use during evening hours.
Magyar said that the Danube’s record-low water level could force the Paks nuclear power plant to shut down completely. The plant relies on water from the Danube for cooling, and if the river level drops too far, its pumps will no longer be able to draw enough water. As a precaution, the Paks plant began reducing its power output in stages during the final week of July.
But Magyar said Hungary was not at risk of an energy shortage and that the country could compensate for the outage caused by a full shutdown of Paks through imports.
Neighbouring Slovakia has offered its help. However, energy expert László Miklós told ATV television that the offer was largely “a political gesture,” as European electricity markets operate under common rules and governments cannot intervene directly in how the power system functions.
Hoaxes and Fidesz's unconvincing criticism
Viktor Orbán's Fidesz attacked Magyar, arguing that the fall in the Danube's water level could have been foreseen and that the prime minister should have acted instead of attending the Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring.
Magyar retorted that Orbán's governments, in power for 16 years, neglected investments that would have made it possible to pump water from the Danube into the Paks nuclear power plant even at such a low water level.
Political analyst Szabolcs Dull has dismissed the former ruling party's criticism because its officials had previously not spoken about drought and the energy crisis.
Meanwhile, a recording of a committee hearing last December has emerged in which then construction and transport minister, János Lázár, admitted that Orbán's governments had been unable for a decade to decide how to address water shortages.
In connection with the drought, a conspiracy theory has begun to spread claiming that Germany, Austria and Slovakia are holding back water in the Danube and that the situation should be resolved through diplomatic channels.
The far-right blog Vadhajtások, which Viktor Orbán has praised, has urged opponents of the Tisza government to keep their air conditioning on and set their freezers to maximum power in defiance of Magyar's appeal for energy saving
Government stresses unity
The energy situation has been complicated by the fact that, alongside the gradual shutdown of Paks, the Dunamenti power plant — Hungary's largest gas-fired power plant — was also not producing electricity due to a malfunction. But the fault was repaired by Sunday (2 August).
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Author Bio
Ágoston Renczes graduated as an economist from Corvinus University of Budapest in 2008. He has been working as a journalist since 2020, mainly writing about Hungarian and Slovak domestic politics, foreign policy, and the economy.
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