In brief
- Romania’s National Committee for Emergency Situations (CNSU) declared, starting 31 July 2026, a national state of alert for 30 days, triggered by falling electricity output caused by severe drought and record-low levels on the Danube and inland rivers.
- The direct cause: Unit 1 of the Cernavodă nuclear power plant has been shut down since 27 July 2026, while Unit 2 is operating at the edge of its safety margins, at risk of an unplanned shutdown due to a lack of cooling water.
- Four ministries have been tasked with finding urgent solutions to raise the water level at Cernavodă, while grid operator Transelectrica must boost output, increase imports or cut consumption to protect the national power system.
Published: Official Gazette of Romania (Monitorul Oficial) no. 637 of 31 July 2026
Enters into force: 31 July 2026, for 30 days
The Government, acting through the National Committee for Emergency Situations, declared a national state of alert starting 31 July 2026 and lasting 30 days, in response to falling electricity production caused by this summer’s severe drought. CNSU Decision no. 15/2026, signed by Prime Minister Ilie-Gavril Bolojan and published in the Official Gazette of Romania the same day it was adopted, stems from a critical situation at the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant: Unit 1 has already been shut down since 27 July 2026, and Unit 2 is running at the limit of its nuclear safety margins, under imminent threat of an unplanned shutdown, because of the sharp drop in the level of the Danube and inland rivers. Just two days later, the Government would also approve emergency technical works on the Danube designed to raise the water level at Cernavodă, a concrete measure that puts into practice the very state of alert declared by this decision.
According to the decision, forecasts from the National Institute of Hydrology and Water Management (INHGA) showed, by the end of July, an unprecedented drop in the flow of the Danube and inland rivers, caused by the severe drought. At the same time, state-owned Nuclearelectrica submitted reports on 29 and 30 July 2026 confirming that Unit 1 remained in a safe shutdown state and flagging extreme volatility in Unit 2’s operating parameters. Taken together, these elements were judged sufficient to declare a state of particularly serious instability affecting the national power system, and therefore to trigger the state of alert.
On 28 August the state of alert was extended by another 30 days, to 28 September 2026.
What it changes in practice
Declaring the state of alert sets four ministries in motion: the Ministry of Energy, the Ministry of Environment, Waters and Forests, the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, and the Ministry of National Defence are tasked with analysing the operational situation and identifying the solutions needed to raise the water level in reactor no. 2’s cooling basin, so that the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant can keep running. Grid operator Transelectrica, in turn, must take all measures necessary to keep the national power system running, including by increasing output from every available source, securing imports or cutting consumption.
The National Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE) and Transelectrica must also speed up the procedures for commissioning all production capacity that is already in advanced stages of authorisation, a measure that could bring new sources of electricity online faster than usual. Coordination of all these activities falls to Cristian Bușoi, State Secretary at the Ministry of Energy, supported by representatives of the other ministries involved and of the General Secretariat of the Government. For the general public, the most important practical effect is that the decision does not, in itself, announce any restrictions on electricity supply — it activates an institutional framework precisely meant to prevent them.
What has changed compared with the previous situation
- An official alert threshold now activated nationwide: before 31 July 2026, the hydrological crisis and the pressure on the power system were handled case by case, by each institution separately; the decision introduces a single coordination framework, with a clear deadline (30 days) and a designated coordinator.
- Four ministries working on the same issue: Energy, Environment, Transport and National Defence have, for the first time in this context, received an explicit joint task tied directly to keeping the Cernavodă plant running.
- Faster authorisation for new production capacity: ANRE and Transelectrica must speed up the commissioning of projects already in the authorisation pipeline, a step that would normally move at a slower pace.
- The first link in a chain of decisions: the decision was followed, just two days later, by CNSU Decision no. 16/2026, which approved concrete technical works on the Danube, and is also connected to the early-August 2026 activation of CONSE, the command structure for electricity-market crises.
Advantages and disadvantages
What it improves
- A clear coordination framework, with explicitly designated institutions and responsible officials, instead of a fragmented response to a problem that simultaneously involves energy, water and critical infrastructure.
- Speeding up the authorisation of new production capacity could bring additional resources into the national power system in the short term.
- Formally declaring the state of alert allows funds and resources to be mobilised quickly, as already shown by the follow-up decision on the Danube works.
What remains a problem
- The decision addresses the effect (falling electricity output), not the underlying cause: the severe drought and the reduced flow of the Danube, which could recur in coming summers.
- The alert is declared for 30 days; the act does not spell out what happens if the hydrometeorological situation fails to improve by then, so an extension cannot be ruled out.
- The document contains no direct measures for the public (for example, recommendations to cut consumption) and remains, for the most part, an act of institutional organisation.
Practical advice
- If you are a household consumer or a business: the decision does not announce any restrictions on the electricity supply; it is an institutional organisation measure, not a signal of a confirmed crisis or imminent outages.
- If you work in the energy sector: keep an eye on subsequent CNSU decisions and Transelectrica’s communications, since the state of alert stays active for 30 days and could trigger further measures if the drought persists.
- If you want the broader context: read up on the technical works approved two days later on the Danube, aimed directly at protecting the operation of the Cernavodă plant.
- For official updates: the recommended source of information during energy-crisis periods is CONSE’s information office and the Ministry of Energy’s communications, not rumours circulating publicly.
Frequently asked questions
What does declaring a state of alert actually mean?
Is the electricity supply being cut off?
Why is the Cernavodă plant under threat?
How long does the state of alert last?
What happened after this decision?
Original text of the legal act
The text below is reproduced in Romanian, the official published form.
The full text, as published in the Official Gazette of Romania
Official Gazette of Romania no. 637 of 31 July 2026 8 pages PDF, 98 KB the act starts on page 7
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This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific situations, consult a licensed attorney or tax advisor.