Ukraine to remain without reserve of capacity at HPP with continued drought – Ukrenergo

Ukraine's energy system in the next winter period will remain without mobile and emergency reserves of capacity at hydropower plants (HPP) with the further continuation of the drought, Ukrenergo said.

"With the absence of significant rainfall in the river basins forming the flow of the Kyiv, Kaniv, Dnister reservoirs, the observance of the minimum sanitarily permissible levels through the main reservoirs will lead to the future higher than planned [reduction of the water level] of the cascade […] A consequence of this is that the united energy system of Ukraine in the winter period of 2015-2016 will remain without a mobile and emergency reserve of capacity at HPP," the company's press service said.

According to Ukrenergo, without serious rainfall it is possible to expect that by the start of ice formation, the Kyiv reservoir will be used to the level of "dead" volume (101.5 meters), Kremenchuk reservoir – to the 78-meter mark and the Dnister to 112 meters.

Now the Dniprovsky cascade HPP is working at its minimum, producing 6.5-10 million kWh a day, which is the lowest figure in all of the cascade's history.