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Mining North Korea: Magnesite Production at the Taehung Youth Hero Mine

Last updated: 65 Days Ago

Antiquated facilities, equipment, and processes, together with the continual plague of electricity shortages, will hinder any dramatic production increases of magnesite at North Korea's Taehung Youth Hero Mine.

Bird's Eye View of Heavy Equipment. Photo by Tom Fisk from Pexels.

North Korea’s Hydroelectric Power – The Tanchon Power Station Project

Last updated: 103 Days Ago

To help meet North Korea’s electrical energy needs, it has placed great emphasis on the use of hydropower. One strategy to improve this sector has been to shift focus from large-scale dams and hydropower plants to smaller ones, arranged in tiers.

North Korea’s Hydroelectric Power – Part II

Last updated: 146 Days Ago

North Korea has faced persistent challenges in generating sufficient electricity to meet its industrial and civil needs. While coal is a primary source of energy consumption, hydroelectric power is the predominant method of electricity production.

Mining North Korea: Magnesite Production at Ryongyang Mine

Last updated: 173 Days Ago

Ryongyang Mine is the largest magnesite mine in North Korea and one of the largest in the world. However, satellite and ground imagery show the infrastructure and technology in use at the mines is dated and obsolete when compared to world standards.

North Korea’s Hydroelectric Power – Part I

Last updated: 202 Days Ago

A Snapshot of North Korea’s Supply Chain Coal Activity – Part II

Last updated: 295 Days Ago

Based on an initial look at North Korea's coal industry, the country's larger coal mines have remained active despite the increasing restrictions on the North's coal exports.

A Snapshot of North Korea’s Supply Chain Coal Activity

Last updated: 310 Days Ago

Despite increasing restrictions on the DPRK's coal exports, the country's larger coal mines have remained active from 2015 to 2019 and improvements have been made to its coal supply-chain infrastructure.

Making Solid Tracks: North Korea’s Railway Connections with China and Russia

Last updated: 380 Days Ago

North and South Korea are moving forward with inter-Korean railway cooperation as a key engine for advancing inter-Korean reconciliation and building the infrastructure for eventual unification. These projects will all be costly and time intensive.

Part 2: Ore Car Activity Up at Wonsan Railway Rolling Stock Complex

Last updated: 421 Days Ago

Update on North Korea's largest railroad rolling stock manufacturing and repair facility.

Modernization and Expansion Project at the Korean People’s Army Fishery Station No. 15

Last updated: 492 Days Ago

The fishing industry’s critical role in North Korea’s economy, particularly its foreign currency earning operations, led to a series of international sanctions on North Korean seafood.

Wonsan Railway Rolling Stock Complex

Last updated: 562 Days Ago

Activity around Wonsan is likely to be a leading indication of inter-Korean joint declaration progress given its role both in the eastern transportation corridor and the national economy.

Across the Tracks: North Korean Railcar Manufacturing and the 2018 Inter-Korean Agreement

Last updated: 587 Days Ago

Connection and modernization of railways in the Korean peninsula's eastern transportation corridor is a declared step within the historic April 27, 2018 joint declaration for peace, prosperity, and unification.

Developments in North Korea’s Sinuiju City under Kim Jong-un

Last updated: 637 Days Ago

In order to help establish his long-term legitimacy as leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un has implemented numerous large-scale public works campaigns to raise living standards for targeted constituencies across the country.

China’s BRI in Nigeria: Impact of Lagos-Ibadan Railway on Port Congestion – Part 2

Last updated: 254 Days Ago

A new rail extension to Apapa port aims to connect Nigeria’s hinterland to global markets to diversify its economy. However, the rail extension may fail to address severe congestion in Lagos’ port areas and high shipping costs will remain.

China’s BRI in Nigeria: Spillover Effects of Lagos-Ibadan Railway to the Regional Economy – Part 1

Last updated: 257 Days Ago

Despite anticipated positive impacts to the Nigerian economy, the Lagos-Ibadan railway has failed to generate positive economic spillover. Nigeria will need additional infrastructure investment to meet the promise of positive economic development.

The Ice Curtain: S-400 Deployments and Enhanced Defense of Russia’s Western Arctic

Last updated: 33 Days Ago

Russia's military posture and the deployment of S-400s in its Western Arctic reflects the Soviet legacy of bastion defense comprised of "concentric circles" designed to protect strategic territory.

The Ice Curtain: Russia’s Military Moves Further North

Last updated: 112 Days Ago

Alexandra Land provides air-sea-land capabilities that reinforce Russia’s multi-layered maritime and air denial power; safeguard the Kola Peninsula which is home to Northern Fleet headquarters and Russia's control over the Northern Sea Route (NSR).

The Ice Curtain: Tiksi Airbase; Many Russian Announcements, Little Equipment

Last updated: 226 Days Ago

Current imagery does not show evidence of the Russian government's plans to expand Tiksi Airbase into a Northern Fleet air defense base, complete with 11 interconnected structures, and a regiment of S-400 surface-to-air missiles.

The Ice Curtain: Protecting the Arctic Motherland

Last updated: 274 Days Ago

A complex layered coastal defense arrangement on Kotelny Island allows Russia to better defend and to deny aerial, maritime, or land access to NATO or U.S. forces.

The Ice Curtain: Why is there a new Russian military facility 300 miles from Alaska?

Last updated: 343 Days Ago

In 2007 Russia re-prioritized the Arctic in keeping with Vladimir Putin's vision of restoring Russia's status as a great power. Now more than a decade later, Russia's military returns to the Arctic with strategic implications for the United States.

North Korea's Economy