Dacia and Ford forced to suspend car production in Romania for three weeks due to Eastern Europe's energy crisis

See more This is Money on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Updated: 06:09 EDT, 4 August 2026 Dacia and Ford have been forced to suspend vehicle production at factories in Romania due to an energy crisis in Eastern Europe.Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan said on Monday that assembly lines at the major car and van plants will pause until August 19 as the country grapples with severe electricity shortages.The crisis has already forced nuclear reactor shutdowns in Romania.The halt to vehicle manufacturing in the country affects a number of popular models.Britain's best-selling new car of the last three years, the Puma crossover, is built at the company's Otosan assembly plant in Craiova, which employs some 6,500 people.The Transit Courier and Tourneo Courier vans are also produced at the same plant, some 130 miles outside Bucharest.Dacia, a brand that originated in Romania before being snapped up by the Renault Group in 1999, also makes the Duster and Bigster SUVs at its Mioveni plant, some 80 miles from the capital.This is Dacia's biggest and primary manufacturing facility. It spans 355 hectares, has more than 6,000 staff members and produces a vehicle every 55 seconds. Production of the Duster and Bigster SUVs at Dacia's biggest car plant in Romania has been suspended under orders of the Prime Minister on Monday. It's not due to restart until August 19 An energy crisis hitting Eastern Europe has also forced the suspension of assembly lines at Ford's Otosan assembly plant in Craiova. The best-selling Puma is built thereWhat's triggered Eastern Europe's energy crisis?Numerous governments across Central and Eastern Europe are taking steps to conserve electricity and avert an energy emergency as record-low water levels affect the Danube River.Its water is used to cool nuclear reactors, pushing power plants in the region to the brink of shutting down.Persistent drought and successive extreme heatwaves have deprived one of Europe's largest rivers of water, pushing levels to a record low.Measurements taken in Hungary's capital, Budapest, revealed the level to be around 10cm on Monday, well below the previous all-time low of 33cm set in 2018.Water levels on the Danube are not expected to rise in the coming days or even weeks, with no significant rainfall forecast.Another extreme heatwave is bearing down on the region, with daytime highs topping 38C (100F), which will trigger higher electricity and water usage. Ford Otosan employs some 6,500 people in the region. The factory assembles the Puma and Puma Gen-E crossovers as well as the Transit Courier and Tourneo Courier vans Dacia's Mioveni plant is its biggest. It spans 355 hectares, has more than 6,000 staff members and produces a vehicle every 55 secondsEastern Europe is taking steps to conserve electricity and avert an energy emergency as record-low water levels affect the Danube River. Its water is used to cool nuclear reactorsThe Danube's record-low levels have pushed Hungary's only nuclear power plant, the Soviet-built four-reactor facility at Paks, to the brink of powering down entirely for the first time in its 44 years of service.The Paks plant, which uses water from the Danube to cool its reactors, was producing only 240 megawatts of power on Monday rather than the usual 2,000.In a video posted to Facebook on Monday, Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar said engineers had managed to keep the plant's final operating turbine temporarily running, averting an expected shutdown over the weekend.'This is very good news because the complete shutdown of the Paks power plant can still be avoided, at least temporarily, on one of the biggest consumption days,' he said, adding that a full power-down was likely on Tuesday or Wednesday.This could have an impact on some major automotive manufacturers that produce vehicles in Hungary.These include Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Suzuki, as well as BYD's electric bus factory. CARS & MOTORING: ON TEST