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Nuclearelectrica shuts down both reactors at Cernavodă / Romania’s nuclear production has once again reached zero

Raluca Ioana Draghici

9 November 2026, 18:06

Current Affairs

facebook.com/ Nuclearelectrica Oficial

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Both reactors at the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant were shut down unexpectedly on Monday evening, and Romania’s nuclear power production once again fell to zero, according to information provided by Nuclearelectrica and cited by TVR Info. The company stated that nuclear safety is not affected.

Unit 1 was shut down due to a malfunction in the vacuum control system of the turbine condenser. In the case of Unit 2, the accidental shutdown was caused by the Danube’s level dropping again. Real-time data indicated that, around 19:00, neither of the two reactors was producing electricity.

The two units are scheduled to be restarted in stages. Unit 1 had returned to operation over the weekend, after a period of unavailability, while Unit 2 was expected to resume production on Tuesday.

Cernavodă has previously had both reactors shut down due to the Danube’s low level. Unit 1 was shut down at the end of July, while Unit 2 was shut down on August 13. The period of unavailability generated estimated losses of approximately one billion lei.

The two reactors have a combined capacity of approximately 1,400 MW and, during periods of high consumption, provide around 20% of Romania’s electricity needs. In the absence of nuclear production, the energy system relies more heavily on hydropower, wind power, and imports.

Context: The Cernavodă reactors had previously been in “safe shutdown” due to the Danube’s level, while authorities prepared water-supply measures

Before the unplanned shutdown, operator Nuclearelectrica kept Units 1 and 2 in a “safe shutdown” state, without operational or nuclear safety risks, amid very low Danube water levels. The company emphasized that the water level was below the threshold required for restart, and that, for operations to resume, it would have had to remain at that level for several days and show an upward trend, based on criteria that were not met.

Also during the preceding period, the authorities and Nuclearelectrica announced interventions to support cooling—including dredging works in the plant area, as well as the preparation of a multi-stage plan that provided for the deployment of barges and the use of pumps/vessels to direct water toward the facility. In parallel, the National Committee for Emergency Situations extended the state of alert, while Nuclearelectrica said it would decide when to reconnect the reactors to the National Energy System depending on the evolution of the forecasts.