From the budget of Mykolaiv in 2025 it is planned to allocate ₴80.7 million for the Affordable Water program

Problems with drinking water in Mykolaiv. Archive photo NikVesti

In 2025, the Mykolaiv city government plans to increase the financing of the «Affordable Water» program to 80.7 million hryvnias, which is 16.5 million more than in 2024.

The corresponding project of the decision is published on the website of the city council, write NikVesti.

These funds are planned to be spent on the operation of water purification systems and repairs, including the purchase of consumables, spare parts and equipment, and well repair.

In fact, the city authorities want to extend the term of the «Affordable Water» program for another year. However, in 2025, the program provides for the maintenance of a larger number of water treatment stations — 213, in 2024 their number was 203.

Changes to the «Affordable Water» program. Screenshot from the solution project

Changes to the «Affordable Water» program. Screenshot from the solution project

Changes to the «Affordable Water» program. Screenshot from the solution project

The draft decision to extend the validity of the program should be considered at the next session of the Mykolaiv City Council.

We will remind that the «Affordable water» program was first adopted in Mykolaiv in 2023. At that time, there were 145 reverse osmosis stations in Mykolaiv, and 37 million hryvnias were allocated for their maintenance.

Later, in December 2023, the deputies accepted a proposal to extend the program for the next year 2024. However, the amount for the maintenance of the stations has almost doubled — 64.1 million hryvnias. Then, at the session of the city council, the deputy director of the department of housing and communal services Ihor Nabatov explained that the cost of service has increased due to the increase in the number of stations and wells.

Also earlier, the secretary of Mykolaiv city council Dmytro Falko said that in Mykolaiv after the war, the city council plans to create a communal enterprise that will take care of points for issuing purified water, will service them and sell water to the population. At the same time, the cost of a liter of water, according to preliminary calculations, can be 20 kopecks.

What about the water in Mykolaiv?

Back in April 2022, Russian troops destroyed the water pipeline through which Mykolaiv received drinking water. Despite constant shelling, the workers of Mykolaivvodokanal tried to restore it, but without success.

The damaged water pipeline «Dnipro - Mykolaiv», which passes through the Kherson region, 2022

The damaged water pipeline «Dnipro - Mykolaiv», which passes through the Kherson region, 2022

In the same year, NikVesti found out how dangerous the water in Mykolaiv's taps is for consumption. It turned out that it contains enterococci, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, toxic elements, has an increased content of chlorides, sulfates, dry residue, etc.

More information about what threatens the people of Mykolaiv from the use of «technical» water and what awaits the residents of the city in the future — we presented in the material "Mykolaiv. The city that holds the defense of the south suffers from thirst.

Water supply for Mykolaiv

In May, Mayor Sienkevych expressed hope that the dismissal of Oleksandr Kubrakov from the position of Minister of Community Development, Territories and Infrastructure will not affect the plans to build a new water main for the city.

Mustafa Naiiem was also dismissed in June. However, Naiiem himself later responded to the Ministry of Finance's accusation that the Agency had not provided the project with a water pipeline in the Mykolaiv region, noting that at the time of his dismissal, the terms of reference for the procurement procedure were already being prepared.

Pipes damaged by salt water stored at Mykolaivvodokanal enterprise, August 2024, photo NikVesti

During the briefing on July 11, answering a question from NikVesti, Vitalii Kim said that Mykolayiv has not yet received funds from the government for the construction of a new waterworks, because the amount has changed there. He planned to present the updated estimate of the project for consideration by the government.

Earlier, the head of Mykolayiv RMA Vitalii Kim told journalists that thanks to the optimization of the estimate, about 3 billion hryvnias are needed for the construction of the water pipeline. Although earlier it was about the amount from 4 to 8 billion hryvnias.

It is worth noting that in two years the government did not allocate funds for the construction of a new water supply system to provide Mykolaiv with quality water. As evidenced by the changes to Cabinet Resolution No. 566, approved on April 29, 2024, NikVesti is written. At the same time, in 2023, the government allocated 8.2 billion hryvnias for the construction of new water mains in the Dnipropetrovsk region, and 5.1 billion hryvnias this year.

During the conference in Berlin, the first vice-speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Oleksandr Korniienko, answering a question from NikVesti, stated that the lack of drinking water in Mykolaiv is one of the biggest problems in Ukraine, which the state must solve in the near future.

David Arakhamiia, head of the Servant of the People parliamentary faction, believes that funds for the construction of a new water main for Mykolaiv should be allocated from the reserve fund of the state budget.

On July 23, 2024, Mykolaiv City Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych met with the leadership of the Service for Reconstruction and Development of Infrastructure in the Mykolaiv Region to discuss the process of building a water main for the supply of drinking water.

Later, it became known that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ordered the construction of a new water main to provide Mykolaiv with drinking water «on the fast track» — drinking water should be available by the summer of 2025. The government has already approved the corresponding program.