Soledar

Soledar (Соледар, soɫeˈdɑr; Соледар, səljɪˈdar; gift of salt), formerly known as Karlo-Libknekhtovsk from 1965 to 1991, is a settlement in Bakhmut Raion, Donetsk Oblast, eastern Ukraine. Situated in the Donbas region, Soledar lies from the city of Bakhmut, and its population was 10,490 in January 2022. It is a highly important salt-mining location, with the Soledar Salt Mine providing 95% of Ukraine's salt in 2021. Soledar has been almost entirely destroyed due to intense fighting during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, after which it came under Russian control on 11 January 2023. Since then, it has been occupied by Russia as part of their Donetsk People's Republic. There is a system of lakes on the edge of Soledar, some with a diameter of . Some of them have an "abnormally warm temperature" that can reach up to . Some are freshwater, while other parts are salty to the point that a person cannot dive deep, and gets pushed upwards. In 2021, a schoolgirl from Zhytomyr Oblast did an experiment on the properties of the lake, and concluded that it could be possible to use it for energy production. The salt extraction company Artemsil, which is based in the settlement, has said that the salt deposits of Soledar are "almost inexhaustible", and that in 300 years of exploitation, the salt reserves have only decreased by one percent. Sil (Сіль; Sol, both literally translated as "Salt") is a settlement about northwest of Soledar proper. Formerly an urban-type settlement of its own, in 1999, the Verkhovna Rada officially declared it administratively subordinate to Soledar. It is most notable for its large railway station, which serves as an essential hub station for shipping out Soledar's salt. Its pre-war population was between 1,000-2,000. As of 2023, most if not all civilians have left because of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Dekonska (Деконська) railway station is another formerly separate settlement, and is located from Soledar proper, in the southern outskirts of Soledar's administrative territory.