How did dams create a deepwater navigation route on the Dnieper River?

The construction of a series of hydroelectric power stations and their associated reservoirs along the Dnieper River was instrumental in creating a continuous deepwater navigation route from the mouth of the Pripet River to the Black Sea.1

By impounding the river, these dams and reservoirs transformed the waterway into a series of controlled levels. To facilitate the passage of modern vessels through these changes in water elevation, navigable locks were installed below the confluence with the Pripet. These locks function as chambers that allow ships to move between different water levels by filling or emptying the chamber to match the upstream or downstream pound.21

This infrastructure, which includes major facilities at Kiev, Kaniv, Kremenchuk, Dniprodzerzhinsk, and Kakhovka, successfully stabilized the river's depth, enabling consistent commercial navigation for the transport of goods such as coal, ore, and grain.13