Examples of environmental harm in Ukraine | return to map
Name: Togliatti-Odesa ammonia pipeline
Location: Masyutivka, Kharkiv Oblast
CEOBS database ID: 11232
Context
The Togliatti-Odesa ammonia pipeline was constructed between 1975 and 1981 and runs for 2,471 km, 1,031 km of which is across Ukrainian territory. The pipeline connects Togliatti in Russia to the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Odesa.1 In Odesa, the Odesa Port Plant either pumped liquid ammonia onto ships for export or converted it into a range of products for export. This included 569,000 tonnes of ammonia-based fertiliser in 2014.
An arm of the pipeline led to the Stirol chemical plant in Horlivka, Donetsk Oblast; however ammonia transport in this section of the pipeline was paused in 2014 for safety reasons.2 The pipeline and Odesa Port Plant were mothballed on the 24th February 2022 because of the risks associated with damage to both. The resumption of ammonia exports later became a key Russian demand as part of the Black Sea Grain Initiative and was supported by the UN in response to fears over food security.3
Timeline of key incidents
5th June 2023
Shelling damaged the pipeline between the villages of Masyutivka and Zapadne in Kupiansk district, Kharkiv Oblast, leading to depressurisation of the section.
The following day, military forces were reported to have fired on the pipeline six times, again near the village of Masyutivka. Pro-Russian Telegram channels began circulating a video of an ammonia cloud spreading from what appears to be a pumping station.
Further attacks were reported on the same section of the pipeline between the 10th and 15th of June.
Damage assessment
The resolution of the available optical satellite imagery does not permit definitive observations of damage to the pipeline, however it does suggest that ammonia gas was released between the 6th and 13th June 2023.4
Environmental harm assessment
When depressurisation of the pipeline occurred, an emergency shut-off valve was activated limiting the leak to 134 tonnes. According to the Ukrainian authorities, ammonia concentrations did not exceed dangerous concentrations in nearby settlements. Airborne ammonia levels reportedly reached “up to 7 ng/m3, while [the] Ukrainian safety limit is up to 10 ng/m3”; however, data provided by the authorities was inconsistent in places. Air sampling in the settlement of Slovyansk, which was further away from the breach, confirmed that the ammonia was not migrating.
Earlier modelling had been undertaken for a Togliatti-Odesa pipeline depressurisation event involving an initial high-pressure short-term emission and residual leakage. This was undertaken at 35 atmospheres of pressure but the actual pressure in the pipeline at the time of the shelling is unclear. The location of the incident means that it was inaccessible for independent inspection, although the pipeline was designed with a number of safeguards.5
Longer-term implications
Future risks from the ammonia pipeline will depend on whether it will be reopened as part of a deal between the conflict parties.
Dis/mis-information watch
In the wake of the 5th of June, a Russian military blogger claimed that the event caused casualties among both Russian and Ukrainian fighters. This claim cannot be verified. Another account alleged that some civilian casualties occurred but no military ones. Russian-backed officials continued to spread news of ammonia leaks two weeks later, without evidence.
Russia blamed Ukrainian sabotage groups for the incident, which occurred a month before the Black Sea Grain Initiative was due to be renewed.
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- The pipeline was constructed as part of a joint project between the TogliattiAzot company, the world’s largest ammonia producer, and Occidental Petroleum, to facilitate ammonia exports to the Global South. The Russian section of the ammonia pipeline is operated by OJSC Transammiak; the Ukrainian section is operated by the State Enterprise Ukrkhimtransammiak.
- During summer 2014, with the intensification of the war in Donetsk Oblast, there were reports that explosives had been planted near the pipeline in Horlivka. Ukrkhimtransammiak decreased the pressure in the pipeline sections running through frontline areas, and shut down a 15 km section adjacent to the Stirol plant. By 2018, the entire 200 km arm from Lozova to Stirol had been emptied. TogliattiAzot sought alternative options to the Togliatti-Odesa pipeline, such as shipping ammonia from Taman port, an option that was still being considered by the Russian authorities in 2024.
- Since autumn 2022, UN-mediated negotiations have sought to include the ammonia pipeline in the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which would allow ammonia exports through the same Black Sea routes. Ukraine has been reluctant, as an arrangement would allow Russia to derive $2.4 billion of profits annually, additional leverage in potential peace talks and carry the risk of a chemical accident. In May 2023 negotiations temporarily resumed with UN mediation for a short period.
- Planet Dove constellation imagery suggests that ammonia was being released on 6, 7, 10 and 13 of June. The release was too localised to confirm without more appropriate available satellite data, and there were not any in-situ monitoring instruments in close enough proximity to the site to capture the release: the nearest civic monitoring stations, Eco-City and SaveEcobot, are located in Slovyansk, which is more than 100 km to the south.
- Emergency cut-off posts with valves were installed every 5.2 km. The ammonia remains liquid at the pressure up to 35 atm and temperature up to 4°C. To prevent corrosion, the transported ammonia contains 0.4% water. The 355 mm wide and 8 mm thick pipe is laid 1.4 m deep in the soil, and in places where the pipeline runs through humid soil and over water bodies, the double-walled 13 mm pipe with the outer layer filled with nitrogen was used. The pipeline was laid no closer than 1 km to inhabited areas.
