Hot weather forecast: 37C European heatwave to trigger power cuts and bleak energy crisis

While there were early hopes of this summer bringing some relief to the energy markets, soaring temperatures have had the opposite effect. Soaring temperatures have repeatedly hit parts of Europe from June, causing disaster in the name of wildfires, increased mortality rates and even causing the Mediterranean sea’s thermometers to smash records. According to reports, the latest surges have also been damaging many sources of electricity generation, apparently aggravating an already “alarming situation.” Just like in the UK, European citizens are experiencing widespread tariff rises and there are fears of winter shortages causing chaos if the mercury plummets.

It is hoped that much of Europe will experience a mild winter for a very good reason.

“The hope was that the summer would bring some relief to the European energy market,” Fabian Ronningen, an analyst at Rystad, a consultancy, told the Financial Times.

“But this heatwave will make the crisis worse later on and it looks bad for the winter. It’s close to our worst-case scenario.”

Nuclear power is also suffering, with river waters used for cooling no longer being cold enough.

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This can cause heat issues with the release of the energy, also causing environmental concerns and forcing some power plants to reduce production.

An example of this is in France, where Golfech power station on the banks of the Garonne announced in July it would draw back some of its production for 10 days.

The move has been described as “very unusual” by Reinhard Uhrig of Friends of the Earth Austria when speaking to the Financial Times.

And with people using more coal across the continent, the heatwave has also impacted that, too.

Ships transporting the coal have had to scale back their loads due to shallow water levels.

Hydroelectric plants have also become under pressure, with some in Portugal having to shut down.

Gas fired power stations are also less efficient – an example of which being a lack of wind amid heatwaves making wind turbines unusable.

Nearly every source of energy has faced some sort of impact as a result of surging temperatures to varying degrees.

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With such ravaging temperatures also comes an increased demand for more energy, with homes and businesses blasting their air conditioning or fans to keep indoors spaces ventilated.

This could see an electricity production demand crunch which will only hit the pockets of the people who need it most.

Additional reporting by Maria Ortega

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