Extreme heat, drought and the proliferation of jellyfish are forcing European nuclear power plants to reduce or halt their production, revealing unexpected vulnerabilities in the continent's energy system. These natural phenomena are affecting some of Europe's largest electricity generation facilities during the summer of 2026.
The most emblematic case happened in France, at the Gravelines nuclear power plant, located near the English Channel, between Calais and Dunkirk. Western Europe's largest nuclear power plant faced difficulties for the second consecutive year, demonstrating the persistence of these problems.
The proliferation of jellyfish represents a particularly problematic threat for these facilities. Millions of jellyfish can block the water intake systems of power plants, forcing them to reduce or temporarily halt electricity production.
According to the online newspaper El Mundo, these events are revealing unexpected vulnerabilities in the European energy system, where unusual biological phenomena, extreme temperatures and water scarcity combine to affect the production capacity of the continent's nuclear power plants.
