Romania’s Nuclearelectrica plans to use electricity imported from Ukraine to cover the shortfall caused by the shutdown of the first power unit at the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant and, accordingly, to mitigate the impact of this shortfall on the Romanian electricity market, the company announced on Facebook on Monday.
“Nuclearelectrica is purchasing electricity from Ukraine; this purchase is being carried out with the support of Energocom, an electricity supplier from the Republic of Moldova,” Nuclearelectrica noted.
According to the company, the energy situation in Romania has been complicated by a severe drought and falling water levels in rivers, particularly the Danube. The first power unit at the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant was shut down as scheduled a week ago.
In addition, as Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar previously reported, due to record-low water levels in the Danube, Hungary will be forced to completely shut down the country’s only nuclear power plant—Paks—for the first time in the plant’s 44-year history. The shutdown, he said, could last several weeks.
The Paks Nuclear Power Plant generates nearly half of all of Hungary’s electricity—its shutdown could lead to a serious power shortage.
As previously reported, between July 20 and 26, Hungary remained the primary destination for Ukrainian electricity exports, with 22,500 MWh (40% of total exports) supplied there.
Exports to Moldova totaled 19,600 MWh (34.8%), and to Romania, 11,100 MWh (19.7%).
Overall, Ukraine maintained its status as a net exporter of electricity for three consecutive weeks from July 6 to July 26; specifically, from July 20 to July 26, the volume of Ukrainian electricity exports exceeded imports by 70%.
