Hungary is set to begin the controlled sinking of two 80-metre-long barges near Paks on Friday afternoon in an extraordinary effort to raise water levels in the Danube and help safeguard the operation of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant.
Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced the latest stage of the emergency construction project in a video filmed at the site of the Danube’s temporary bottom sill.
According to the prime minister, all of the anchoring piles, drilled eight metres into the riverbed, have now been installed. The two barges will be secured to them using steel cables approximately four centimetres thick before being deliberately sunk.
80-metre barges to be lowered into the Danube
The controlled sinking of the two vessels was expected to begin at around 3 PM on Friday, according to Magyar. The operation forms part of a major project designed to increase the Danube’s water level near Paks amid prolonged drought and exceptionally low river levels.
Work is continuing around the clock, involving the Hungarian Defence Forces, industrial divers, water management specialists, contractors and staff from the National Defence Authority. The scale and complexity of the construction work has been described by Magyar as unprecedented in Hungary in recent decades.
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Government invites opposition leaders to Paks
Magyar has invited the leaders of Hungary’s parliamentary parties to Paks at 10 AM on Saturday. The prime minister said he wanted to show them the construction site and explain why the government had been forced to undertake such a complex and large-scale project.
He also intends to discuss what he described as failures over the past decade that contributed to the current situation.
However, the leaders of Fidesz and Mi Hazánk declined the invitation, citing holidays and other reasons.
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Magyar attacks Orbán over absence
The prime minister sharply criticised former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán for declining to attend. Magyar accused Orbán of remaining silent despite the prolonged drought, low Danube water levels and Hungary’s energy situation.
He argued that the current circumstances required national cooperation regardless of political differences, and said Orbán should have visited Paks to see the work being carried out and hear about the government’s efforts to stabilise the country’s energy supply.
Magyar also suggested that Orbán could have brought contributions from business figures to help with the project. The prime minister concluded by thanking everyone involved in the emergency construction effort, saying that around 145,000 cubic metres of rock will ultimately be used for the temporary and permanent structures.
“Together, we will raise the Danube’s water level and ensure the operation of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant,” Magyar said.
