European electricity providers may be in jeopardy because of year 2000-related failings in the nuclear power stations in Eastern Europe, according to a report published by the European Commission entitled The Millennium Bug: The Preparedness of Key EU Infrastructures for the Y2000 Date Change.
Contingency planning was the central recommendation of the report, which forms the basis of European Council discussions by the heads of European governments currently meeting in Cologne, Germany. The dependence of critical sectors such as hospitals and telecommunications on the power market makes this area particularly important, and the government officials are expected to issue warnings and requests for other countries to collaborate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Part of the problem is the lack of information, explains Jochen Kubosch, a spokesperson for the European Commission. Interdependency is also a worry. Telecoms firms can do everything to ensure that their own systems are millennium compliant, but they could still be stymied by a power failure over which they have no control.
