Extreme weather emergency — State Property Fund on the dusting of sludge from the Mykolaiv Thermal Power Plant

The State Property Fund has commented on the sludge dredging at the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant. Screenshot: NikVesti

The State Property Fund of Ukraine has commented on the situation regarding the dusting of red sludge from the sludge storage facilities of the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant (MAP), caused by deteriorating weather conditions and stormy winds. They noted that they are aware of the problem and are monitoring the situation.

This was stated by SPFU officials in response to a question from NikVesti during a press conference marking the first 100 days of Dmytro Natalukha’s tenure as head of the fund.

Head Dmytro Natalukha stated that the problem arose due to weather conditions and has now been resolved.

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«We are aware of this problem. As of today, as far as I know, it has been contained. This is partly due to what happened on the streets yesterday. You saw it; two people even died in western and central Ukraine as a result of the storm,» said the head of the State Property Fund.

The Fund’s deputy head, Vitalii Kovalenko, described the incident as an «extreme climatic emergency» and added that he is in constant contact with the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration and the management of the Mykolaiv Shipbuilding Plant. At the same time, he said that the State Property Fund is facing some difficulties in transferring certain equipment to the plant.

«We are in constant contact with the Mykolaiv Regional Administration; there is a deputy there who has been fully involved in this matter (Heorhiy Reshetilov, — note), and the plant’s general director is also involved. But yesterday there was an extreme weather emergency, and we know that such incidents can occur periodically at many facilities, particularly in manufacturing. This is not a breach of the law, but rapid containment and joint action resolved the issue. And we are assisting the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant as our own facility, understanding that there are some complications regarding the transfer of equipment, but this matter is being resolved promptly. The regional state administration is assisting us; they are in constant contact,» clarified Vitalii Kovalenko.

As is known, on 26 April, due to deteriorating weather conditions, storm winds began to scatter sludge from the sludge storage facilities of the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant across the surrounding area — waste remaining after the processing of bauxite into alumina.

That evening, the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration assured the public that the situation at the MAP sludge fields had been brought under control.

The streets of the village of Lymany near Mykolaiv, shrouded in dust from the MGA’s sludge fields. Photo from social media

NikVesti has repeatedly reported on the potential environmental disaster that could arise due to the risks of dust from the sludge, as well as the leakage of slurry water into the Bug Estuary.

It should be noted that two years after the confiscation of the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant, the State Property Fund has done nothing to resolve the environmental issue regarding the sludge.

For more details on the situation at the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant, read the article «Trapped in stagnation: what are the prospects for the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant following nationalisation?».

Mykolaiv Alumina Plant, archive photo NikVesti

The Mykolaiv Alumina Plant — a slow-burning environmental «time bomb»

Having been out of operation for five years now, the plant has become far more dangerous to the environment than it was when operating at full capacity. This view was expressed by the head of the State Environmental Inspectorate, Ihor Zubovych, in response to an information request from NikVesti regarding the situation at the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant since the start of the full-scale war.

Sludge ponds must be constantly moistened and the water beneath the sludge pumped out to avoid an environmental disaster, archive photo by NikVesti

According to a report that NikVesti received from the State Environmental Inspectorate, on 19 July 2022, the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant reported that, due to shelling in the vicinity of sludge storage facility №2, the processing of the surface of the deposited red sludge in the facility’s basins had been hampered, giving rise to risks of red sludge dust formation.

Consequently, the plant is only treating a third of the area of sludge storage facility №2: «hostilities in the vicinity of sludge storage facility №2 and damage to the dust suppression system’s lines, making their repair difficult; the inability to maintain the dust suppression system due to the freezing of the plant’s accounts. At the same time, maintenance of sludge storage facility №1 is being carried out in full by wetting the area using the company’s own resources».

Twice in August 2022, once in September 2022 and once in January 2023, MAP reported that, due to increased wind speeds, uncontrolled dust emissions were observed from one of the slurry ponds, which could have caused contamination of land plots outside their sanitary protection zone. The company then activated the dust suppression system at sludge storage facility №2.

However, due to a shortage of staff, the company was unable to carry out dust suppression work on the slopes of sludge storage facility №1.

Uncontrolled dusting of sludge from the company’s sludge fields continued to occur throughout 2023: in May, July, August (twice) and September (four times).

Until July 2022, maintenance work on the dust suppression systems at sludge storage facility №2, including the restoration of the system following shelling, was carried out by a contractor, which ceased providing services because MAP had not paid them for their work for almost six months.

In the spring of 2023, operations at the company’s sludge storage facilities became critical:

1. the level of slurry water in the working basin of sludge storage facility №1 exceeded the permissible limit, posing a risk of pollution to the waters of the Bug Estuary, located 300 metres from the sludge field.
2. The accumulation of sludge at sludge storage facility №2 has reached a critical level, with a higher alkalinity than at sludge storage facility №1. Overflowing of this storage facility will lead to the contamination of the agricultural land adjacent to it.
3. The problem of significant dusting from the sludge in Field № 2 persists, which may cause air pollution. This is due to the fact that a «dry» storage method is used there, which requires constant monitoring and moistening of the surface.
4. The sprinkler system for dust suppression (necessary for moistening the sludge), which was in operation at the plant, was damaged and rendered inoperable during the hostilities.

In July 2025, the State Environmental Inspectorate of the South-Western District informed the Minister of Economy and Environment that the waste situation at the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant was deteriorating. Environmentalists warned of the risk of a sludge reservoir breach and pollution of the Bug Estuary.

The State Property Fund plans to put the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant, confiscated from Russian oligarch Oleh Derypaska, up for sale by July 2026. Dmytro Natalukha, head of the State Property Fund, noted that an external investor needs to be sought for the Mykolaiv Alumina Plant who can «afford not to pay too much heed to war risks» and «can guarantee the asset’s security through their flag and citizenship». The head of the State Property Fund named the US and India as potential investors.

The Mykolaiv Alumina Plant (MAP) will be put up for sale together with the company’s slurry ponds, where alumina production waste is stored.