Factcheck: How nuclear, gas, wind and solar power are affected during heatwaves

Carbon Brief breaks down how heatwaves hobble power generation across the board. During this summer's European heat waves, when temperatures hit 40 degrees Celsius, nuclear reactors shut down, gas plants lost efficiency, and wind speeds dropped. In France—which gets roughly 70 percent of its electricity from nuclear power—three reactors went offline and seven others cut output during July's heat wave, reducing total generation by about nine percent. The culprit is often simple: nuclear plants use river water for cooling, and when that water gets too hot or levels drop due to drought, they lose efficiency or have to shut down to protect aquatic life. Gas plants suffer similarly—at 40 degrees, they lose 13 percent of their capacity and seven percent of their efficiency. Meanwhile, the heat also sparked demand: French electricity consumption jumped nearly 20 percent during a two-week heat wave as people cranked air conditioning. The silver lining is that heatwaves cut annual nuclear generation by only about 0.6 percent on average, and utilities are adapting with better cooling systems and maintenance scheduling.

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