North Korea

C

Forestry and Fishing

Production of round wood stood at 7.3 million cubic meters (259 million cubic feet) in 2006. North Korea has a modern fishing fleet; in 2005 the catch was 712,995 metric tons, largely anchovy, tuna, mackerel, and seaweeds.

D

Mining

Mining is an important sector of the North Korean economy, and efforts are being made to develop new deposits. The focus has been on iron ore and coal, which had, in 2004, outputs of 1.3 million and 30.1 million metric tons, respectively. Other important minerals include tungsten, magnesite, zinc, copper, lead, silver, gold, graphite, and uranium.

E

Manufacturing

Metallurgical industries and the manufacture of heavy machinery represent a major share of North Korea’s national income. Other manufactures include trucks, diesel locomotives, heavy construction equipment, cement, synthetic fibers, fertilizers, and refined copper, lead, zinc, and aluminum.

F

Energy

North Korea is well endowed with coal and hydroelectricity resources. Hydroelectric power accounts for 56 percent of the electrical output. In 2003 electricity production was 18.7 billion kilowatt-hours.

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In the past, given its lack of proven petroleum reserves, North Korea also relied on imports of petroleum to meet its energy needs. Initially, it sought to reduce its dependence on these imports by maximizing the production of coal and hydroelectric power. But North Korea proved unable to keep up with its energy needs and turned to nuclear energy as the key to energy self-sufficiency. The extent of its natural resource endowments made it feasible for North Korea to pursue a peaceful nuclear program and a military one at the same time. North Korea possesses extensive reserves of the graphite and uranium needed for the gas-graphite type of nuclear reactor. While this type of reactor can be used to generate electricity, it is also uniquely suited to the diversion of nuclear fuel for military purposes.

In 1989 U.S. spy satellites discovered that a reactor at Yǒngbyǒn, nominally intended for civilian nuclear power generation, had been shut down, offering an opportunity for the diversion of plutonium to military use. This provoked a diplomatic crisis that resulted in a U.S.-South Korean-Japanese commitment in 1994 to construct two reactors in North Korea of a type not suited for military use. These reactors are known as light-water reactors (LWRs). Although the agreement broke down and the reactors were never built, North Korea continues to seek LWRs, which Japan, South Korea, and other countries use to generate electricity.

Another possible new energy source for North Korea, in addition to LWRs and petroleum, is natural gas. Russia’s natural gas monopoly, Gazprom, has conducted preliminary discussions with North Korea on a possible gas pipeline from a gas field in western Siberia or from Sakhalin Island that would cross through North Korea en route to South Korea and would supply North Korean power stations and fertilizer plants.

G

Transportation

The railroad system of North Korea is electrified along most of its 8,530 km (5,300 mi) of track. It has direct links to South Korea, China, and Russia. In May 2007 two passenger trains traveled between North and South Korea for the first time since the Korean War began in 1950. The one-time event was regarded as largely symbolic of improved relations between the two countries. There are 31,200 km (19,387 mi) of roads, of which only 6 percent are paved. The Taedong River is important to internal trade; the total length of inland waterways is about 2,250 km (1,400 mi). Major ports include Namp’o and Haeju on the western coast and Ch’ŏngjin and Wŏnsan on the eastern coast.

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