site.btaUPDATED Romania Starts Emergency Dredging Operations in Danube near Cernavoda NPP

Emergency dredging operations began on Tuesday in the Romanian section of the Danube River in an effort to increase the river's flow near Romania's only nuclear power plant (NPP), Cernavoda, which has already shut down one reactor due to drought, local media reported.

Romanian authorities have already taken measures to ensure the safe operation of the plant, including sinking four barges loaded with rocks to create an artificial weir and divert part of the river's flow toward the nuclear facility. However, these measures failed to produce the expected result, Digi24 reported.

At an emergency meeting on Tuesday, the Romanian government allocated an additional RON 5.1 million to continue dredging operations aimed at deepening the riverbed and ensuring the flow required for the plant to operate safely. The new funding comes after RON 7 million was allocated on July 31 for the sinking of the barges, Digi24 recalled.

The television channel said the water level of the Danube near the Cernavoda nuclear plant is now just 3 cm above the level at which a second reactor would also have to be shut down.

The problem with Danube's low water level was also discussed in Brussels during an online meeting of the European Commission's Electricity Coordination Group on Tuesday, Digi24 reported.

Romania is asking European Commission representatives to take the necessary steps to activate a procedure in case the country needs electricity but is no longer able to purchase it from other sources. At the same time, efforts are made to renegotiate a deadline under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, which requires coal-fired power plants to be shut down by August 31. The goal is to postpone the deadline and keep all coal-fired power plants operational until the energy crisis has passed, Digi24 reported.

Nuclearelectrica, the state-owned company that operates the Cernavoda NPP, said on Tuesday that the plant's second reactor could also be shut down on August 13 as the level of the Danube continues to fall, Reuters reported. The NPP has only two reactors, which together account for around 20% of Romania's electricity generation.

"The possibility of a controlled shutdown of the second reactor is based on monitoring the weather forecast for the coming period, the falling level of the Danube River and operational parameters," Nuclearelectrica said.