Pukchang power station

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Pukchang power station (북창 화력발전 연합기업소) is an operating power station of at least 2800-megawatts (MW) in Pukchang, South Pyongan, North Korea with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating. It is also known as Bukchang power station.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Pukchang power station	Pukchang, Pukchang, South Pyongan, North Korea	39.586142, 126.305072 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

• Unit 1, Unit 1, Unit 10, Unit 10, Unit 11, Unit 11, Unit 12, Unit 12, Unit 13, Unit 13, Unit 14, Unit 14, Unit 15, Unit 15, Unit 16, Unit 16, Unit 17, Unit 18, Unit 19, Unit 2, Unit 2, Unit 20, Unit 3, Unit 3, Unit 4, Unit 4, Unit 5, Unit 5, Unit 6, Unit 6, Unit 7, Unit 7, Unit 8, Unit 8, Unit 9, Unit 9: 39.586142, 126.305072

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology	CHP	Start year	Retired year
Unit 1	mothballed	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1971	–
Unit 1	mothballed	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1971	–
Unit 10	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 10	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 11	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 11	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 12	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 12	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 13	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1984	–
Unit 13	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1984	–
Unit 14	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1984	–
Unit 14	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1984	–
Unit 15	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1984	–
Unit 15	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1984	–
Unit 16	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1984	–
Unit 16	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1984	–
Unit 17	operating	coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	2018	–
Unit 18	operating	coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	2018	–
Unit 19	operating	coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	2018	–
Unit 2	mothballed	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1971	–
Unit 2	mothballed	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1971	–
Unit 20	operating	coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	2018	–
Unit 3	mothballed	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1971	–
Unit 3	mothballed	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1971	–
Unit 4	mothballed	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1972	–
Unit 4	mothballed	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1972	–
Unit 5	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1972	–
Unit 5	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1972	–
Unit 6	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1972	–
Unit 6	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1972	–
Unit 7	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 7	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 8	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 8	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 9	operating	coal - lignite, fossil liquids - fuel oil	100	subcritical	–	1975	–
Unit 9	operating	fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - lignite	100	subcritical	–	1975	–

CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner
Unit 1	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 1	–
Unit 10	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 10	–
Unit 11	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 11	–
Unit 12	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 12	–
Unit 13	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 13	–
Unit 14	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 14	–
Unit 15	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 15	–
Unit 16	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 16	–
Unit 17	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 18	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 19	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 2	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 2	–
Unit 20	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 3	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 3	–
Unit 4	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 4	–
Unit 5	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 5	–
Unit 6	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 6	–
Unit 7	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 7	–
Unit 8	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 8	–
Unit 9	Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex [100.0%]
Unit 9	–

Background

The Pukchang power station is North Korea's largest power plant. It began operating in 1971; the initial units were built as part of an economic and technology exchange agreement with the Soviet Union. Other units were added in subsequent years. It appears to be a combined heat and power (CHP) plant.

The power station was proposed in 1961. It underwent various phases of construction:

• Phase One (units 1-6): Units 1 to 3 were put into operation in 1971, with a power generation capacity of 300 MW; In 1972, the capacity increased to 600 MW with the operation of Units 4 to 6.
• Phase Two (units 7-12): Between 1973 and 1975, units 8 [sic] to 12 (and presumably unit 7) were reportedly put into operation, and the power station’s capacity expanded to 1,200 MW.
• Phase Three (presumably units 13-16): Construction of a 400 MW expansion began in 1978 and was completed in 1984.
• Phase Four (units 17-20): Between 2015 and 2017, with the support of used equipment from China, the construction of units 17 to 20 reportedly added any additional 400 MW of capacity at the power station (presumably coal).

The latest expansion (Phase Four) appears to match with a 2014 government announcement that they were constructing another thermal power plant near the Pukchang Thermal Plant Complex to supplement its power.

Planet imagery from 2015 to 2021 also shows new development east of the original power station. A small new plume is visible starting around 2018.

In December 2018, the power station held an expansion completion ceremony. No capacity figures are mentioned in these announcements, only one source referred to 400MW for Units 17-20.

According to one summary, the power station consumed 5 million tonnes of coal one year, with 90% of coal and 10% of fuel oil.

Updated 2020 report from the Korean Development Bank (Volume 1) reported the plant's capacity at 1,600MW with sixteen 100MW units in operation. This is confirmed in several other sources. It is not clear whether some older units were mothballed or retired after the commissioning of additional capacity in 2018. It is assumed that that 4 older units were mothballed.

Aging units

Various units were refurbished over the last few decades. Given numerous issues at the power station, the actual operating capacity is likely less than the installed capacity.

Electricity shortages in North Korea are frequent and have been a problem for decades; according to one source from the Daily NK, "only one or two generators are actually operating" at any given time in the country's power plants. In 2019, the North Korean government announced that they would be ramping up the production of domestic coal to aid the situation; however, most citizens agreed that fixing the existing power plants and making them more efficient should have been the higher priority.

The aging power station was still responsible for rolling blackouts in 2020.

In 2020, North Korea announced it would be undergoing a "power plant recovery" procedure to address the issue of power shortages in the country. This project included the Pukchang plant, where ‘defective’ equipment would be replaced.

A media source from June 2022 referred to the authorities' appeal for increased maximum output from Pukchang Thermoelectric Power Plant around the clock, despite delayed repairs because of the shortage of spare parts as the borders have been closed during the pandemic.

In May 2023, it was reported that since the beginning of the year, thermal power plants such as the Bukchang Thermal Power Plant have produced millions of kWh more electricity compared to the same period last year. Reporting in October 2023 indicated that the Pukchang power station continued to maximize output via unspecified "technological innovations"(Google Translate).

Incidents

In December 2022, a boiler exploded at the power station after being operated over its limits. The explosion came after North Korean authorities made repeated calls to increase domestic electrical production, with critics calling the incident a “typical man-made disaster” resulting from excessive operations due to state coercion. The plant stopped operating after the explosion and five workers were sent to the boiler room to complete urgent repairs. They sustained burns and were hospitalized.

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datases, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.