North Korea is often associated with electricity shortages. A famous satellite picture comparing the two Koreas shows how brightly the lights to the South shine at night – and how dimly they do in Pyongyang. The rest of the DPRK drowns in darkness, a fitting visual metaphor, to many, for the isolation of the country and the dysfunction of its state.

NK News has learned from numerous in-country sources that the situation recently took a turn for the worse. Even in the country’s capital, one source said a harsh winter and a crippled infrastructure led to an “unusually bad” situation – and while the predicament is improving as demand drops and the weather improves, a rocky road to recovery will be required if this is not be repeated next year.