BUDAPEST, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Hungary's Paks nuclear power plant began gradually increasing the output of its Unit 2 on Monday evening after a rise in the Danube's water level improved conditions for drawing cooling water, the plant said.
"The slow rise in the Danube's water level observed in recent days, together with a temporary moderate increase, has enabled the nuclear power plant's specialists to begin raising the output of Unit 2," the plant said in a statement.
Earlier on Monday, Prime Minister Peter Magyar said the Danube was 19 centimeters above the low point recorded a week previously, allowing the restart procedure to begin.
The procedure began at 6 p.m. local time and Unit 2 was expected to reach its nominal output by 10 p.m., according to the statement.
Due to the exceptionally low water level, Units 1, 3 and 4 had been shut down, while Unit 2 operated at 50 percent of its capacity for 11 days. The plant's four reactor units are each connected to two turbine-generator sets.
The plant said its personnel had been prepared to shut down the final operating unit and ensure the safe cooling of all four units. However, the current and forecast water levels, together with the related technical conditions, allowed output to be gradually restored.
The restart was being conducted through a detailed, multi-stage procedure under continuous operational, safety and regulatory supervision, the statement said.
No significant rainfall is forecast over the next 10 days in Hungary or in the Austrian and German sections of the Danube catchment area, leaving water conditions fragile, according to Magyar.
Located about 100 km south of Budapest, the Paks plant is Hungary's only nuclear power station and a major source of the country's electricity.
