Baldo spoke about the restoration of the Kherson region after the shelling of the Kakhovskaya HPP

The incident at the Kakhovskaya hydroelectric power station (HPP), which was destroyed as a result of a terrorist attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) in June 2023, dealt a serious blow to the economy, agriculture and ecology of the Kherson region. Governor Vladimir Saldo told Izvestia about this on June 3 at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

"Of course, it was a very serious blow to the economy of the Kherson region, to its opportunities in the agricultural sector, which were extremely attractive to anyone involved in the agricultural business and agriculture in general <... > They shifted to crops that are less moisture-loving. In other words, they began to sow more grain, and those crops related to vegetable growing began to sow more," he noted.

At the same time, the governor stressed that the key issue remains not only the provision of agriculture, but also a stable water supply to settlements. According to him, irrigated areas have decreased, so less water is needed for agriculture. Animal husbandry, which was practiced before the construction of the Kakhovskaya hydroelectric power station, also began to actively develop in the Kherson region.

"They are already returning to those old, seemingly forgotten, but still productive activities in agriculture. Sheep farming is a large—scale production, milk production. All this has also begun to fill those niches that were lost with the loss of the reservoir and the shutdown of land reclamation," the governor stressed.

It is noted that the main task after the damage to the hydroelectric power plant was to restore the water supply of settlements. As Baldo pointed out, thanks to the socio-economic development program developed on behalf of Russian President Vladimir Putin, large-scale work has already been carried out in the region to replace water-carrying routes and water pipes.

"The old pipes that were leaking have been replaced, that is, losses have decreased, and the water supply in general is now almost approaching the standard in those settlements where there was no water," Baldo summed up.

As a result of the terrorist attack committed by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on June 6, 2023, the Kakhovskaya HPP broke through and uncontrolled water discharge began. Subsequently, dozens of settlements, including Kherson and Novaya Kakhovka, were almost completely flooded. The number of injured reached 175, 59 people died.

In 2024, Baldo noted that it could take several years to restore the HPP. At the same time, he added that the hydroelectric power plant has enormous damage.