Hungary to shut Paks nuclear plant as Danube hits record low

Hungary is shutting down the Paks nuclear plant on Sunday after the Danube fell to a record low, Prime Minister Magyar confirmed. Paks is Hungary's sole nuclear facility. The loss of its output removes the zone's baseload anchor at a time when summer demand is elevated.

Cooling water constraints are a recurring operational risk for river-cooled thermal and nuclear assets across Central and Eastern Europe during drought periods. A record-low Danube level makes this shutdown more than a routine maintenance event: it reflects a physical infrastructure limit, not a scheduled outage.

With Paks offline, the Hungarian zone will lean harder on cross-border imports, primarily from Slovak, Austrian, and Romanian interconnectors. Traders watching CEE spreads should expect upward pressure on Hungarian day-ahead prices for the duration of the shutdown. No restart timeline has been confirmed.