Romania rushes to sink 4 barges in the Danube to keep a nuclear power plant's second reactor running

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BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romania raced on Thursday to sink four barges laden with rock into the Danube River in an attempt to redirect water downstream toward a nuclear power plant, to buy more time before its second reactor is likely forced offline due to record-low water levels.

Extreme heatwaves and low rainfall across the region have left the Danube at record lows over the past week, forcing the shutdown of a reactor at Romania’s Cernavoda nuclear plant last week. The state-owned nuclear power plant accounts for about 20% of the country’s electricity generation when fully operational and uses river water to cool its reactors.

The four barges were loaded with rock that Romania’s military blasted from the river this week using explosives near the Danube’s Bala Canal. Once submerged, the barges will create an underwater barrier to redirect the water down the river’s main channel and toward the Cernavoda plant.

Speaking to local news channel Digi24, the plant’s director Romeo Urjan said Thursday the Danube’s water level had decreased about two centimeters (0.7 inches) from Wednesday to Thursday and that, without sinking the barges, the plant’s second reactor would likely have to be shut down in five to six days.

“If the installed barges bring surplus water ... instead of five to six days, we will talk about nine to 10 days of operation from today onward,” he said.

He added that the impact of the barges being submerged could take about a day to reach Cernavoda, since it’s located around 60 kilometers (37 miles) downstream.

Authorities have implemented a series of emergency measures since the first reactor shut down, including dredging of the river.

The Danube’s water flow has fallen to its lowest in decades this week at 1,400 cubic meters per second in Romania, less than a third of what is typical for this time of year.

Acting Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan announced a nationwide state of alert in the energy sector on Jul. 31. He appealed to citizens and local authorities again on Thursday to voluntarily limit electricity usage in peak evening hours, and said that the sinking of the barges would likely last till Friday.

Bolojan said after a government meeting that the works carried out so far aim to maintain a flow even if the Danube levels are forecast to be low, focusing on maintaining water flowing so that the second reactor can operate “at maximum capacity.”

He added that Romania could face potential energy shortfalls if the Cernavoda plant is taken completely offline, adding that it could depend on whether energy could be imported during peak evening hours from neighboring countries, many of which are dealing with their own shutdowns amid the drought.

In neighboring Hungary, the Danube’s record-low levels have pushed the country's only nuclear power plant to the brink of powering down entirely for the first time in decades. In Moldova, which relies heavily on imported electricity, including from Romania, the authorities have urged citizens to voluntarily reduce usage during peak hours.

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McGrath reported from Leamington Spa, England.