Filenews 14 July 2022
By Javier Blas
Europe is plagued by a heat wave that has driven temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius in many countries. As households and businesses use their air conditioners, electricity demand has risen sharply and wholesale electricity prices have skyrocketed. But much more worrying - and much less debated - is the drought that is spreading from Germany to Portugal and which has the potential to exacerbate the current energy crisis for much longer than the current heat wave.
Drought is a gift of nature for Russian President Vladimir Putin, making Europe even more dependent on Russian gas at a time when the Kremlin has significantly reduced flows to Europe. Last winter, the weather favoured Europe, as unusually high temperatures during the Christmas period reduced the demand for energy. But now, the lack of rain is working to the detriment of Europe.
Drought matters to electricity beyond the production of hydropower. Coal-fired power plants in Germany rely on water canals such as the Rhine River to transport fuel, and French nuclear power plants rely on rivers for cooling. If hydropower, coal and nuclear power production is disrupted, all that will be left in Europe as an option is wind and solar energy, which are affected by weather conditions - and gas.
At the Maximiliansau water meter, water has fallen to its lowest seasonal level since at least 2005, endangering navigation to French and Swiss industrial and commercial centres such as Strasbourg, Mylouzi and Basel. The big fall marks further drought for the Rhine River soon.
The problems on the Rhine are well documented, as it contains dozens of water metering points that allow analyzers to calculate the water level. But multiple rivers in Europe suffer equally from drought, even if they are less in the news. For example, the Po River, Italy's longest river, is suffering its worst drought in 70 years.
The first victim is the production of hydropower, forcing countries such as Spain and Italy to burn more gas at a time when every cubic meter is particularly expensive. Seasonally, Spanish hydroelectric production is at its second lowest level in 20 years. In France, hydroelectric production is the weakest in the last decade. In a typical year, hydropower is the fourth largest source of electricity in the entire European Union, after natural gas, nuclear power and wind power, producing almost 14% of all electricity.
Worse may come. Electricite de France (EDF), which manages Europe's largest fleet of nuclear power plants, has warned that it is likely to cut production at some individual plants this summer as the drought reduces the volume of river water available for cooling. It is noted that the French company was forced last month to limit production at the Saint-Alban nuclear power plant, near Lyon, after the level of the Rhône River was lowered. Another five EDF nuclear power plants are at risk, the company said last week.
At the moment, coal-fired power plants look well stocked, since they used the period of high water levels during the spring melting of snow to replenish their reserves. But they are not immune: the Karlsruhe plant in Germany has already reported supply problems, which suggests that the problems will reappear soon, potentially hitting Germany at the worst possible time. The Rhine River is the cheapest and easiest way to transport coal from Rotterdam to southern Germany.
Therefore, as we make our assessments of what will happen in the aftermath of the energy conflict between Europe and Russia, bear in mind the weather conditions. And to pray for rains.
