The Lack of Electricitydue Due to Low-Precipitation

[imText1]With North Korea entering a period of low-precipitation winter season (dry season), it seems that the electricity situation is worsening. A source from the North Hamkyung Province said recently, “We hardly see electricity.”

The source commented in a phone conversation on the 10th that people live having no idea of what is going on in the outside, “There is no electricity in the evening, so we cannot even watch Chosun Central TV. Moreover, it takes 10 days for the Rodung Shinmun to arrive.”

Rail operations have been irregular due to the power shortage, which accounts for the problems in newspaper delivery. North Korean rail runs on electricity.

The nongovernmental organization Good Friends relayed that Kim Jong Il issued the following order since October, “Trains should run on a fixed schedule.” As a result, operation hours were in order, but due to the shortage of electricity, the delay in operations has been reoccurring. The Pyongyang-Hamheung train which usually took about a week was curtailed to 1-2 days, but has returned to previous status recently.

The source expressed that what grieves him the most is eating meals in dark rooms and that children cannot study. “They do not give us any electricity from 5 a.m., which is when most people prepare their morning meals, to 8 a.m. and between 6 p.m. to 11p.m.”

Upon being asked, “Do you have any resentment about the fact that there is a black-out during the hours when citizens use electricity the most?” he replied, “However, there is some electricity during the night and in the daytime, which is generous by North Korean standards. Outside of the city, in the farming villages, people live without any electricity.”

The power situation in North Korea became worse since last year, so instead of distributing household electricity to political organizations, army units, employee enterprises, and farm threshing floors, only one to two hours of electricity are being provided to average homes in mid-sized cities. North Korea mostly runs on hydroelectric power, so the power shortage is especially severe during the low-precipitation winter season.

During North Korea’s winters that are lacking in fuel and even firewood, many go through the season without any heat. One bundle of wood is 500 won, 20 kg of brown coal costs 1,300 won, and 20 kg of coal is 1,100 won. Korean-Chinese people who visit North Korea during this season use the expression, “Civilians who live in North Korea without any heat seem like wild animals.”

North Korea offers privileges of providing electricity to political organizational leaders first. The upper-class have prepared for black-outs by keeping generators inside their homes.