Ukraine must rebuild the Kakhovka Hydropower Plant. Ukrhydroenergo, the state enterprise that administers hydro power plants, has announced it is preparing to fully design a new complex as soon as circumstances permit, Suspilne reports. 

Its destruction was one of Russia’s largest environmental and energy-related war crimes, and its reconstruction is a strategic step toward energy independence and national security. 

“We are ready to begin restoration work as soon as the war ends, the area is de-occupied, and agreements allow it,” emphasizes Bohdan Sukhetskyi, Acting CEO of the company.

According to him, a 3D model of the Kakhovka Reservoir bed has already been created, communication routes laid out, and a temporary dam planned. But actual construction can only begin after de-occupation and demining.

“Ukraine needs the Kakhovka HPP… Our first task is to ensure a water supply for the entire country. The second, to balance the power system,” Sukhetskyi reveals.

The destroyed plant was part of the Dnipro cascade of hydropower stations, which efficiently uses every drop of water from Kyiv to the Black Sea. Without Kakhovka, shipping stops, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant cannot be cooled, and clean energy isn’t generated.

“The shipping corridor from the upper Dnipro to the Black Sea is currently non-operational… until we raise the water level,” the company head explains.

Following the dam explosion on 6 June 2023, 620 km² of land across four regions were flooded. 100,000 people were affected, at least 32 were killed, and damages totaled $1.5 billion.

Some analysts see it the act as a form of revenge against Kherson Oblast for resisting Russian occupation, and as a demonstration that Russia was willing to take drastic measures when unable to hold territory by force. 

Ukraine warns of a nuclear disaster risk that could impact all of Europe. Moscow is reportedly considering reconnecting the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant to the Russian energy grid despite serious technical problems, UNIAN reports.

According to Yury Sheiko, First Deputy Minister of Energy of Ukraine, the plant’s power units remain in cold shutdown and are not generating electricity. The station is still being powered by Ukraine’s energy grid.

“They have no spare parts, no equipment, and no idea how to maintain or repair it,” Sheiko stresses.

The situation is even more dangerous due to a lack of qualified personnel. Most Ukrainian specialists do not have access to the equipment, and the technical condition of the plant remains unknown.

“No repairs have been carried out. The plant is not ready to be restarted. It’s extremely risky,” he warns.

Ukraine believes that Russia is using the prospect of restarting the plant as a tool of nuclear blackmail, trying to pressure both Kyiv and the international community.

Earlier, Petro Andriushchenko, head of the Center for the Study of Occupation, reported that Russia may be preparing to connect the ZNPP to its own grid, constructing a power line to restore the plant’s full operation.

Meanwhile, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi stated that the agency has no evidence that the plant is being reconnected to the Russian grid. He also noted that the ZNPP cannot be restarted due to a lack of cooling water for the reactors.