Kathmandu— Hungary will shut down its sole nuclear power plant, Paks, for the first time in 44 years on Sunday as a result of record-low water levels in the Danube river. Prime Minister Peter Magyar made the announcement late Saturday night, citing further drops in the river's level which is crucial for cooling the reactors.

Impact of Water Level Decline

The Danube has reached record-low levels after months of below-average rainfall and heatwaves since May. The water authority projects that levels will continue to drop in the coming days, with measurements in Budapest at just 23 centimeters on Wednesday morning, well below the previous record low of 33 centimeters set in 2018.

As a result, output from Paks has already been reduced earlier this week and some reactors shut down. The prime minister stated that due to further declines, the second-to-last generating unit at Paks will be shut down at 1:30 a.m., leaving the plant producing only 240 megawatts of electricity before it is completely offline on Sunday.

Economic and Operational Challenges

The shutdown could cost Hungary between $315 million to $630 million due to increased reliance on imported electricity. Magyar warned that the plant may remain offline for weeks, leading his government to seek voluntary power cuts from large users with penalties for noncompliance. A decree would allow grid operator MAVIR to mandate consumption cuts and temporarily disconnect large users if necessary.

"Households will be the last to face restrictions," said Prime Minister Magyar.

(With inputs from DW)

Originally published on abcnews.com.np.