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Romania's Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant Reactors to Remain Shut Down Until at Least October 15

Cristian Bușoi, State Secretary of Romania's Ministry of Energy, stated to the media through public channels that Romania is experiencing its most difficult energy situation in recent decades. The low flow of the Danube River and low water levels near Cernavoda have severely affected the nuclear power plant. Currently, both reactors remain shut down, and the Danube's flow is expected to reach a historic low within the next ten days. At least until October 15, Units 1 and 2 of Cernavoda cannot be restarted. The extreme low water level of the Danube has not only caused an interruption in nuclear baseload power supply but has also simultaneously impacted the hydroelectric power output of the country's hydropower stations. Romani...

2026-10-08

When the Water Runs Dry, the Reactors Stop: Behind Romania Losing One-Fifth of Its Electricity, Heavy-Industry Reactor Designs Are Suffering a Fatal "Cold Source Asphyxiation" — Examining the Physical Interrogation of High-Water-Consumption Baseload Plants by Extreme Drought Through the Prolonged Paralysis of the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant

For a long time, nuclear power has been regarded as the unwavering backbone of round-the-clock baseload electricity, immune to weather conditions, cloud cover, or lulls in wind. However, the nearly two-month total shutdown of Romania's Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant is breaking this industry paradigm in an extreme and brutal manner. Because the Danube River has experienced a historically rare drought exceeding warning thresholds and a cliff-edge collapse in water levels, the country's only nuclear power plant—which safeguards one-fifth of its electricity supply—has been paralyzed by the loss of cooling water assurance, with no prospect of near-term restart. This extreme case not only tears open a massive gap in winter energy security for Romania and even Southeastern Europe, but also sounds an alarm for the global energy community: in the face of increasingly...

2026-10-08

Romania's National Nuclear Power Company Plans to Borrow EUR 800 Million from the European Investment Bank: Full Speed Ahead on the Refurbishment of Cernavodă NPP Unit 1

Romania's National Nuclear Power Company (Nuclearelectrica) recently submitted a disclosure to the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB), announcing plans to obtain a long-term loan totaling EUR 800 million from the European Investment Bank (BEI), earmarked to finance the Unit 1 Refurbishment and modernization project at the Cernavodă NPP. This major external financing plan has been placed on the agenda and will be formally submitted to shareholders for approval and deliberation at an extraordinary general meeting to be held from October 29 to 30, 2026. The European Investment Bank's Board of Directors had previously formally approved on July 15, 2026, an EUR 800 million credit facility for the project, which is...

2026-10-08

Romania and Argentina Nuclear Power Companies Sign Memorandum of Understanding to Deepen CANDU 6 Heavy Water Reactor Technology Cooperation

Romania's National Nuclear Power Company (SNN) and Argentina's Nuclear Power Company (NASA) signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding on Thursday. According to a press release issued by the Romanian company, the two parties will engage in in-depth cooperation in the operation and development of CANDU 6 heavy water reactor technology. Both companies possess strong technical strength and rich practical experience in the engineering design, daily operation, equipment maintenance, large-scale project management, life extension, nuclear safety analysis, and reactor operation of CANDU 6 technology nuclear reactors. Argentina's Nuclear Power Company had previously successfully completed the refurbishment and upgrade of the Embalse Nuclear Power Plant, which uses CANDU technology...

2026-09-18

Romania's Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant to Remain Offline Until at Least September 18 Due to Low Danube River Levels

On September 8, Romania's Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant was expected to remain offline until at least September 18 due to low water levels in the Danube River. Emil Macovei, Technical Director of Nuclearelectrica, the operator of the Cernavoda plant, stated that over the next 10 days, the Danube's water volume would still be insufficient to support the restart of either of the plant's two units. Romania's Antena 3 television channel quoted him as saying that current hydrological conditions do not yet meet the requirements for unit operation. Cristian Busoi, Secretary of State at Romania's Ministry of Energy, said that predictions regarding the plant's restart timeline were "rather optimistic," and the ministry is currently unable to provide a definitive date for resuming operations. He confirmed that...

2026-09-09

Romania's Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant unlikely to restart before September 10

Romania's Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant is expected to be unable to resume operations before September 10. Cristian Bușoi, State Secretary of the Romanian Ministry of Energy, stated that although the Danube River flow is recovering, water levels around the plant have not yet reached the conditions required for a safe and stable restart. In a recent interview, Bușoi said that to avoid creating unrealistic expectations, it can currently be confirmed that the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant does not yet meet the conditions for restart before September 10. He explained that the plant's operation depends on a stable water source to ensure the reactor...

2026-09-03

Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant Fully Shut Down Due to Falling Danube River Water Levels

Due to the continuous decline of the Danube River water level, the two units of Romania's only nuclear power plant, the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant, have been successively shut down. To alleviate the pressure on electricity supply, Unit 4 of the Rovinari coal-fired cogeneration plant has been put into operation, adding approximately 330 megawatts of generating capacity to Romania's power system. Romania's nuclear power company (Nuclearelectrica) previously reported that due to the sharp decline in the Danube River water level, which affected the assurance of cooling water for the reactor, Unit 2 of the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant was shut down in a controlled manner on the morning of August 13. The company stated that the shutdown process was carried out in accordance with procedures. At the end of July this year, Unit 1 of the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant had already been shut down for the same reason...

2026-08-19

World's first laser plasma accelerator-driven high-resolution muon imaging experiment to launch in Romania

Ideon Technologies, a global subsurface detection muon tomography company, is participating in an international research consortium to conduct the world's first high-resolution muon imaging experiment driven entirely by a laser plasma accelerator. The experiment aims to use a compact accelerator to produce muon beams on demand for non-destructive high-resolution imaging, with applications targeting mineral production, critical infrastructure, cargo inspection, medical imaging, semiconductors, nuclear security, and space radiation testing. Consortium members include the University of Texas at Austin, the Extreme Light Infrastructure - Nuclear Physics (ELI-NP) facility team, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, ELI-Beamlines, and Tau Systems.

2026-08-18

Unit 2 of Romania's Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant shut down for at least 10 days due to falling Danube River water levels

Romeo Urjan, head of Romania's Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant, said that due to the continuous decline of Danube River water levels, Unit 2 of the plant has been shut down since August 13 for at least 10 days. Romania's Ministry of Energy stated on August 12 that Unit 2 of the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant required a temporary shutdown. As planned, the shutdown operation began on the morning of August 13 and was completed before noon that day. Urjan stated that Danube River water levels are expected to continue declining over the next 10 days, so the plant currently has no plans to restart Unit 2. He emphasized that this shutdown is unrelated to nuclear safety issues or emergencies, with the main reason being...

2026-08-14

Romania's Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant to Shut Down Due to Falling Danube River Levels

Romania's Ministry of Energy announced on the 12th local time that, due to current hydrological conditions, Unit 2 of the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant will undergo a controlled shutdown starting on the 13th. Cernavoda is Romania's only nuclear power plant, and this shutdown will mark the first time the plant has been completely taken offline since 2003. The Cernavoda plant has two units, with Unit 1 already shut down at the end of last month. The plant accounts for approximately one-fifth of Romania's electricity generation. Romanian authorities had previously taken engineering measures to delay the shutdown of Unit 2, including dredging relevant sections of the Danube River, blasting and removing underwater rock obstacles, clearing the riverbed, and sinking barges loaded with crushed stone into the river channel to adjust water flow conditions. These operations involved an investment of over 2 million euros.

2026-08-13

Romania's Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant to Shut Down Completely Due to Low Danube Water Levels

Affected by persistent drought and low Danube water levels, the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant in Constanța County, southeastern Romania, is expected to be completely shut down within the next 48 hours. Sorin Lindasu, a representative of Romania's water utility company Apele Române, stated that based on current hydrological forecasts, the shutdown of the nuclear power plant is unavoidable and there is no other solution. On Tuesday local time, the Danube's flow rate at its Romanian estuary dropped to 1,370 cubic meters per second, below the previous historical low of 1,450 cubic meters per second. Meteorological forecasts indicate no significant rainfall in the Danube basin over the next five days. Cristian Bușoi, State Secretary of the Romanian Ministry of Energy...

2026-08-12

Romania Plans to Allocate 51 Million Lei for Danube Dredging to Ensure Operation of Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant

The Romanian government will allocate 51 million lei for Danube River dredging works, an arrangement specifically highlighted as crucial to the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant. The Danube is not only an important shipping route for Romania but is also closely linked to the operation of energy infrastructure—river water depth, flow conditions, and water intake safety all affect the stable operation of coastal industrial and power facilities. The Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant is a key asset in Romania's power system, and its operation requires stable water source conditions as cooling assurance. If the Danube experiences low water levels, sediment accumulation, or navigational obstructions, it could increase operational management pressure on the nuclear power plant and also affect the transport of fuel, equipment, and...

2026-08-11

Danube Water Levels Recover, Hungary Restarts Second Turbine at Paks Nuclear Power Plant

On August 10, as the Danube River's water levels recovered, Hungary began restarting a previously constrained turbine at the Paks Nuclear Power Plant. The Paks plant uses Danube water for cooling and normally supplies nearly half of Hungary's electricity. Due to heatwaves and persistent drought, the Danube's water levels fell to historic lows in recent weeks, reducing the plant's generating capacity to about 10%, with only one of its eight turbines remaining operational. According to available information, Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar stated on the 10th that the Danube's water level had risen 19 centimeters from the low point recorded last week, and that restart work on the second turbine at the Paks plant had begun, with power generation expected to resume by Monday evening. He also previously mentioned...

2026-08-11

Unit 2 of Romania's Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant Still at Risk of Shutdown

Ionel Scrioșteanu, State Secretary of Romania's Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, stated that Unit 2 of the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant is currently still in operation, but the risk of shutdown has not been eliminated. On August 8, Romanian authorities took emergency measures by sinking four fully loaded barges into the Danube River to raise local water levels, increasing the water intake into the plant's cooling water system to ensure the cooling needs of the reactor units. Scrioșteanu said on social media that the related actions have achieved positive results, allowing Unit 2 of the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant to continue operating...

2026-08-11

Romania in Talks to Purchase 300 Tons of Uranium from Niger, Nuclear Fuel Supply Diversification Faces Legal Uncertainties

Romania's state-owned nuclear power company Nuclearelectrica has initiated negotiations to purchase 300 tons of uranium from Niger, against the backdrop of Romania's push to diversify its external nuclear fuel sources. The talks began on April 13, 2026, with Niger's Minister of Mines Ousmane Abarchi responding positively, after which the Romanian delegation continued engagement with the Nigerien side. The transaction is valued at approximately $40 million, but Nuclearelectrica has emphasized that no final agreement has been reached yet. The potential appeal of this uranium supply lies in Romania's expanding nuclear power development plans, while domestic large-scale uranium mining has ceased. As the operator of the Cernavodă nuclear power plant...

2026-08-10