Ukrhydroenergo says how destruction of Kakhovka dam will affect Ukraine’s hydrosystem

Following reports of the dam’s destruction, Ukrhydroenergo said that the water intakes supplying drinking water to Nikopol, Marganets, and other cities, as well as the industrial water intakes of the Nikopol South Pipe Plant, along with approximately 50 small agricultural water intakes, would face disruptions.

The main Kakhovka irrigation canals and the Dnipro-Kryvyi Rih canal, which draw water from the Kakhovka Reservoir, and which have flow rates of 41 m3/s, will cease operations. This has the potential to affect Ukraine’s agricultural output.

It is also important to note that the initial forecast anticipated a controlled water release – not the catastrophic flooding caused by the destruction of the dam.

Russian forces deliberately destroyed the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant in the early hours of June 6, destroying its dam, Ukrainian authorities say. Authorities in Kherson Oblast have issued an urgent evacuation order, as flooding poses a threat to downstream towns and settlements along the Dnipro River. The peak of the flooding was expected around noon Kyiv time (GMT +3).

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy convened an emergency meeting of the National Security and Defense Council in response to the dam explosion.

Energoatom, the nuclear power plant operator, stated that the Russian-initiated destruction of the Kakhovka dam may have adverse effects on the occupied Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant. However, as of 8.30 a.m. on June 6, the situation there was reported to be under control.

Energoatom said that the rapid decrease in water level in the Kakhovka reservoir poses a threat to the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP, as water from the reservoir is vital for the operation of turbine condensers and safety systems at the plant.

While Ukrhydroenergo officials said that the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant has been completely destroyed due to the explosion caused by Russian occupiers and is beyond repair, Natalia Humeniuk, spokesperson for the Southern Defense Forces, said not all of the dam has been destroyed.

Ukraine’s state electricity transmission system operator, Ukrenergo, reported that the explosion at the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant and the resulting destruction have not affected the stable operation of Ukraine’s power system – the hydroelectric plant at Nova Kakhovka was not operating when it was destroyed.