The construction process of Ryugyong Hotel

Construction started The "Ryugyong Hotel" was built in 1987 with an initial budget of US$750 million, which was 2% of North Korea's total GDP. For comparison, 2% of the total GDP of the United States is approximately $220 billion. The construction of the hotel was the North Korean government's response to the "Asian skyscraper craze" at that time, especially South Korea's investment in the construction of the "Stamford Hotel" in Singapore. Initially, the North Korean government wanted to introduce the first batch of Western investors through the "Ryugyong Hotel" and stated that investors would be taken care of and could add casinos, nightclubs and other leisure venues to the hotel. The North Korean government is so proud of the Ryugyong Hotel that it added the Ryugyong Hotel to the map before construction even started, and issued stamps boasting about the hotel during construction. The background of the construction of "Ryugyong Hotel" is: in 1976, North Korea's annual power generation alone had reached one-third of China's, and North Korea's per capita GNP in 1980 (no GDP data is available, but statistically the two are similar) ) has exceeded US$2,000, which is not much different from South Korea. It has the ability to carry out such construction. It is also a response to South Korea's investment in the construction of the "Stamford Hotel" in Singapore. Construction began in 1987 with an initial budget of US$750 million, which was 2% of North Korea's total GDP at that time. However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, due to the cutoff of the economic system, the economies of the former Soviet Union and the republics plummeted. Russia's economy did not even stabilize until 1999, and in 1999 per capita GDP had already been It is one-tenth of what it was during the Soviet period. Due to its close economic ties with the Soviet Union and other countries, North Korea suddenly became one of the poorest countries in the world in the process. At the same time, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, North Korea felt insecure and began to develop nuclear weapons. At the same time, it expanded its military strength to 1.1 million (for comparison, China has 70 million troops in proportion to its population). It can no longer be supported financially. So it fell into a state of shutdown.

After the completion of the "Ryugyong Hotel", the first event to be held was the "World Youth and Student Day" in June 1989. However, when the time came, the "hotel" was far from being completed. After five years of construction, the construction was completely suspended due to various problems. The main reason for the suspension of construction was the lack of funds and electricity. Over the years, the construction of the "Ryugyong Hotel" has never resumed. The project was completely abandoned, leaving a crane above the roof.

Although the concrete shell was completed when construction stopped in 1992, its safety has never been verified as habitable. The building has no windows or exterior wall formwork, nor any interior device. The poor quality of the concrete caused the building's foundations to settle, requiring the frame to be renovated even if construction was to be resumed.

The North Korean government is still seeking foreign investment, amounting to approximately US$300 million. It is estimated that it will be difficult for North Korea to attract investors because the government has very strict policies on tourists visiting North Korea. It only allows about 130,000 tourists per year, and almost none of them come to Pyongyang. To make matters worse, North Korea's perennial drought and famine will make it extremely difficult to operate this five-star hotel.

Most North Koreans either deny the incident outright or avoid the subject, preferring the latter given that the symbol, which embarrasses the North Korean government, can be seen from every corner of Pyongyang. .

Resumption of work

According to the "Asahi Shimbun" report in July 2008, Egyptian telecommunications giant Orascom Group began to rebuild the Ryugyong Hotel.

The Ryugyong Hotel in North Korea, once rated as "the worst building in human history" by Esquire magazine, has restarted construction after being suspended for 16 years.

According to foreigners living in Pyongyang, Egyptian telecommunications giant Orascom Group has begun rebuilding the Ryugyong Hotel. Ryugyong Hotel has the 105th floor and is in the shape of a triangular pyramid. Only the main structure has been repaired.

Orascom Group added glass to the concrete shell, installed communications antennas and unveiled an artist's vision of the hotel's exterior.

An official of the group said that the Orascom telecommunications subsidiary was indeed involved in the project, but he did not disclose details.

The Ryugyong Hotel, the tallest building in North Korea, is about to be completed. The Ryugyong Hotel was once called the world's largest unfinished building, and was also rated as "the worst building in human history." Since construction began in 1987, there have been many delays and stoppages, and it will finally be completed 24 years later. However, South Korean construction experts have raised doubts that the Ryugyong Hotel may be in danger of collapse.

After the suspension of construction in 1992, the European Union Chamber of Commerce in Korea inspected the building and concluded that the foundation was sinking due to problems with the quality of the concrete, and the frame would probably need to be renovated if construction was to resume. Nowadays, some architectural experts in South Korea believe that the design of the Ryugyong Hotel is inherently poor. They are skeptical about the structure of the hotel. Some even believe that if the Ryugyong Hotel is forced to be built, there may be a risk of collapse.

Finishing

Egyptian telecommunications group Orascom Group Investment has begun the finishing work of the Ryugyong Hotel, and the glass on the exterior of the building has been inlaid. South Korean media estimate that completing the construction and renovation of this huge building will cost US$2 billion. This hotel is designed to have 3,000 rooms, 7 revolving restaurants, casinos, nightclubs, etc.