Is Slovenia's Krško Nuclear Power Plant at Risk of Shutdown?
Croatian board member confirms the plant could begin reducing output within days, while the government insists power supply is secure.
Croatian board member confirms the plant could begin reducing output within days, while the government insists power supply is secure.
Due to record-high temperatures and a prolonged drought, the Krško Nuclear Power Plant (NE Krško) could be forced to reduce output within days, or even shut down entirely. The temperature of the Sava River, which cools the plant, is approaching the absolute limit of 28 degrees Celsius at the point of complete mixing, a restriction set by the 2023 environmental impact assessment.
Croatian board member Saša Medaković confirmed for RTL Danas that the average heating temperature for yesterday reached 25.7 degrees, with the daily rise in the Sava's inlet temperature ranging from 0.5 to 0.6 degrees. "So we're talking about one, two, or three days until we reach the point where we must act," Medaković stated.
Medaković detailed the action plan if conditions do not change. The plant would first reduce output in three stages, starting at 80 percent capacity, where it would remain for a day or two. Then, power would be further reduced by 15 percent in two steps.
"Once we reach 50 percent, the plant would have to be completely shut down. The entire process would take five to seven days," Medaković noted. He also emphasized that nuclear safety is not compromised and that all systems are operating without any restrictions.
Gorazd Pfeifer, President of the Management Board at NE Krško, expressed similar concerns. "The Sava upstream from us warmed by nearly half a degree today. If even warmer water reaches us, we'll have no room left for additional river heating. If conditions don't change, we'll have to partially reduce the plant's output," Pfeifer told HRT.
NE Krško directly supplies half of its production to Croatia, amounting to about eight or nine gigawatt-hours daily, which on an annual average corresponds to the consumption of the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers about 15 percent of its electricity needs from this plant.
Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, who visited Brač on Tuesday for the Municipality of Bol Day, said there is no reason for panic. "Security of supply is guaranteed. HEP issued a statement yesterday, and there's no doubt that Croatia will have enough electricity. Regarding Krško, I was with Minister Šušnjar yesterday, who is in contact with his Slovenian counterpart, and there's no threat whatsoever," Plenković stated.
The Prime Minister further clarified on Twitter that the energy sector is stable according to the Minister of Economy's information and that he would discuss the matter in more detail with HEP's CEO during the day. However, he did not answer whether electricity prices would rise due to the difficult situation on the European market.
Nuclear energy expert Tonči Tadić from the Ruđer Bošković Institute believes there is no cause for concern, noting that NE Krško's cooling system differs from nuclear plants in Hungary and Romania. "These two nuclear plants in Hungary and Romania, and Krško, are on different rivers, and there's an attempt to project a problem that doesn't exist," Tadić told N1.
He added that the Krško plant has cooling towers that enable more stable operation during high temperatures. "NE Krško has cooling towers, which greatly secures the situation. These are things considered when building a nuclear plant, not when such problems arise," Tadić said, concluding that future plant design and operation will increasingly need to account for cooling systems due to more frequent heatwaves.
