The effects of this summer’s historic heatwave continue to be felt across Europe. Soaring temperatures and drought in the region have led to elevated river temperatures, low river levels, and wildfires, which have significantly impacted nuclear power plants across the continent.

France’s Electricité de France has reported elevated river temperatures which have forced production cuts, including recent cuts at Golfech, and nuclear power plants in Hungary, Romania, and the United Kingdom, have faced exceptional challenges in recent days.

Sizewell B, on the Suffolk coast of England, has been granted a 20-year life extension. The nuclear power plant, which began operating in 1995, will now remain in operation until 2055. Sizewell B owner and operator EDF Energy agreed to make extra investments to maintain the facility, with additional investment funds coming from Centrica, which owns a 20 percent share in EDF’s U.K. reactors.

The EDF Group’s Nuclear Operations business, which is the majority owner of the five operating and three decommissioning nuclear power plant sites in the United Kingdom, has released its annual update on the U.K. fleet. UK Nuclear Fleet Stakeholder Update: Powering an Electric Britain includes a positive review of the previous year’s performance and news of a billion-dollar boost in the coming years to maximize output across the fleet.

By all accounts the most productive nuclear power plant in British history, Somerset’s Hinkley Point B station closed for good on August 1, with the shutdown of its B1 unit, a 485-MWe advanced gas-cooled reactor. (The plant’s B2 unit, a 480-MWe AGR, was shuttered early last month.)

The station employed around 500 staff and 250 contractors and contributed approximately £40 million (about $48.7 million) per year to the Somerset economy, according to EDF Energy, owner and operator of the United Kingdom’s power reactor fleet.