In Crimea, they calculated how much Dnieper water will cost for farmers

The State Committee for Water Resources has determined the cost of Dnieper water for farmers using artificial irrigation systems.

It is 35 kopecks per 1 cubic meter, which is several times higher than the old, but unprofitable for the “vodkhoz”, prices and is still higher than neighboring Kuban, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.

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For rice farmers, payment for water will be calculated based on the area of ​​crops - 8,48 thousand rubles per hectare. To fill ponds in fish farms - 14 kopecks per cubic meter. All other agricultural producers will receive water through the North Crimean Canal system at a price of 35 kopecks per cubic meter.

Compensation for electricity costs for pumping water will be calculated separately, taking into account distance and elevation. All this will be reflected in the contracts that will begin to be signed with farmers starting today.

“Compared to other regions, these tariff plans are much lower,” assured Roman Zakharov, adviser to the chairman of the State Committee for Water Resources of Crimea. “The approval has passed all stages, 2023 for agricultural producers is the moment and period when the use of water for irrigation is both an important task and economically justified.”

Rice farms in neighboring Kuban pay 7 thousand rubles per 1 hectare of irrigation; for all other producers the price is 12 kopecks per cubic meter. Agricultural producers in the Kherson region will not pay for water at all this year as government support for the industry.

“Water from the Kakhovka reservoir to Dzhankoy flows by gravity, there are no pumps,” recalled acting head of the Kherson region Vladimir Saldo. “The Kakhovka irrigation system of the Kakhovka Canal and the North Crimean Canal divides the water and distributes it to farmers throughout the Kherson region, which is why last year and this year the water is free.”

Last year, Crimean producers were already faced with the fact that the cost of agricultural products did not cover the costs of growing crops. Cheap fruits and vegetables from the Kherson region and the Azov region have reduced prices for borscht set by a third, and about 700 tons of such products arrive on the peninsula every week. At the Privoz market in Simferopol, 20 places are allocated for agricultural producers from new regions; at weekly fairs, places are provided to them free of charge.

In 2014, when the Crimean authorities still harbored hope for water supply through the North Crimean Canal and discussed the terms of its supply, they were talking about a payment of 0,6-1,5 Ukrainian kopecks per cubic meter.

“As part of Ukraine, we entered into contracts for water supply services, and not for the water itself. And, of course, it was minuscule. In Crimea, we have 3,5 kopecks for rice, 4 kopecks per cubic meter for vegetables, and 13,5 kopecks for grains. And we pumped water 365 km, in addition to diversion canals and pipelines. It is clear that this was not profitable,” said Igor Weil, head of the State Committee for Water Resources of Crimea at that time.

This year, applications for water supply were submitted by 210 legal entities and individuals - farms, individual entrepreneurs, including 13 rice farmers. The canal will carry 246 million cubic meters of water, including 144,5 million for rice cultivation.