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Norilsk ( rus, Нори́льск, p=nɐˈrʲilʲsk, ''Norílʹsk'') is a
closed city A closed city or closed town is a settlement where travel or residency restrictions are applied so that specific authorization is required to visit or remain overnight. Such places may be sensitive military establishments or secret research ins ...
in
Krasnoyarsk Krai Krasnoyarsk Krai ( rus, Красноя́рский край, r=Krasnoyarskiy kray, p=krəsnɐˈjarskʲɪj ˈkraj) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai), with its administrative center in the city of Krasnoyarsk, the third-largest city in Siber ...
,
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
, located south of the western
Taymyr Peninsula The Taymyr Peninsula (russian: Таймырский полуостров, Taymyrsky poluostrov) is a peninsula in the Far North of Russia, in the Siberian Federal District, that forms the northernmost part of the mainland of Eurasia. Administrat ...
, around 90 km east of the
Yenisey River The Yenisey (russian: Енисе́й, ''Yeniséy''; mn, Горлог мөрөн, ''Gorlog mörön''; Buryat: Горлог мүрэн, ''Gorlog müren''; Tuvan: Улуг-Хем, ''Uluğ-Hem''; Khakas: Ким суғ, ''Kim suğ''; Ket: Ӄук, ...
and 1,500 km north of
Krasnoyarsk Krasnoyarsk ( ; rus, Красноя́рск, a=Ru-Красноярск2.ogg, p=krəsnɐˈjarsk) (in semantic translation - Red Ravine City) is the largest city and administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is situated along the Yeni ...
. Norilsk is 300 km north of the
Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...
and 2,400 km from the
North Pole The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distinguish from the Mag ...
. It has a permanent population of 182,701 (2021), and up to 220,000 including temporary inhabitants. It is the second-largest city in the region after Krasnoyarsk. Since 2016 Norilsk's population has grown steadily. In 2017, for the first time, migration to the city exceeded outflow; In 2018, according to Krasnoyarskstat, natural population growth amounted to 1,357 people: 2,381 people were born, 1,024 people died. It is the world's northernmost city with more than 180,000 inhabitants, and the second-largest city (after
Murmansk Murmansk (Russian: ''Мурманск'' lit. "Norwegian coast"; Finnish: ''Murmansk'', sometimes ''Muurmanski'', previously ''Muurmanni''; Norwegian: ''Norskekysten;'' Northern Sámi: ''Murmánska;'' Kildin Sámi: ''Мурман ланнҍ'') i ...
) inside the
Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...
. Norilsk and
Yakutsk Yakutsk (russian: Якутск, p=jɪˈkutsk; sah, Дьокуускай, translit=Djokuuskay, ) is the capital city of the Sakha Republic, Russia, located about south of the Arctic Circle. Fueled by the mining industry, Yakutsk has become one ...
are the only large cities in the
continuous permafrost Permafrost is ground that continuously remains below 0 °C (32 °F) for two or more years, located on land or under the ocean. Most common in the Northern Hemisphere, around 15% of the Northern Hemisphere or 11% of the global surface ...
zone. Norilsk is located atop some of the largest
nickel Nickel is a chemical element with symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel is a hard and ductile transition metal. Pure nickel is chemically reactive but large pieces are slow to ...
deposits on
Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
. Consequently, mining and
smelting Smelting is a process of applying heat to ore, to extract a base metal. It is a form of extractive metallurgy. It is used to extract many metals from their ores, including silver, iron, copper, and other base metals. Smelting uses heat and a ch ...
ore are the major industries. Norilsk is the center of a region where nickel,
copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...
,
cobalt Cobalt is a chemical element with the symbol Co and atomic number 27. As with nickel, cobalt is found in the Earth's crust only in a chemically combined form, save for small deposits found in alloys of natural meteoric iron. The free element, pr ...
,
platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Platinu ...
,
palladium Palladium is a chemical element with the symbol Pd and atomic number 46. It is a rare and lustrous silvery-white metal discovered in 1803 by the English chemist William Hyde Wollaston. He named it after the asteroid Pallas, which was itself na ...
, and
coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...
are mined. The presence of mineral deposits in the
Siberian Craton Siberia, also known as Angaraland (or simply Angara) and Angarida, is an ancient craton in the heart of Siberia. Today forming the Central Siberian Plateau, it was an independent continent before the Permian period. The Verkhoyansk Sea, a passive ...
was known for two centuries before Norilsk was founded, but mining began only in 1939, when subterranean portions of the Norilsk-
Talnakh Talnakh (russian: Талнах) was a town located about north of Norilsk at the foot of the Putoran Mountains in Taymyr Peninsula, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. In 2005 the town was merged into Norilsk. Population: It is the site of the mines se ...
intrusions were found beneath mountainous terrain. In 2004, two satellite cities (Talnakh and
Kayerkan Kayerkan (russian: Кайерка́н), located in the northern part of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia and in the southern part of the Taymyr Peninsula, was a town under jurisdiction of Norilsk Norilsk ( rus, Нори́льск, p=nɐˈrʲilʲsk, ''N ...
) became districts of the city of Norilsk, and Oganer became a suburb of Norilsk's Central District. The jurisdiction of Norilsk also extends to the settlement of Snezhnogorsk, which originated in 1963 as a settlement to accommodate the builders of the Ust-Khantai Hydroelectric Power Station. Access to Norilsk is restricted for foreign citizens, who are required to obtain a special permission to visit the city.


Name

Norilsk owes its name to its geographical location. The
Norilsk river Norilsk ( rus, Нори́льск, p=nɐˈrʲilʲsk, ''Norílʹsk'') is a closed city in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located south of the western Taymyr Peninsula, around 90 km east of the Yenisey River and 1,500 km north of Krasnoyarsk. Norilsk i ...
flows near the city, which is located near the Norilsk
mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...
s. The travelers
Khariton Laptev Khariton Prokofievich Laptev (russian: Харитон Прокофьевич Лаптев) (1700–1763) was a Russian naval officer and Arctic explorer. Khariton Laptev was born in a gentry family in the village of Pokarevo near Velikiye Luki (in ...
, Alexander Fyodorovich Middendorf, and
Fedor Bogdanovich Schmidt Carl Friedrich Schmidt (russian: Фёдор Богданович Шмидт, Fyodor Bogdanovich Schmidt; also known as Friedrich Schmidt; in Kaisma, Livonia – in Saint Petersburg) was a Baltic German geologist and botanist in the Russian E ...
mentioned the river Norilsk and the Norilsk mountains in their accounts. According to the Soviet Arctic explorer
Nikolay Urvantsev Nikolay Nikolayevich Urvantsev (russian: Николáй Николáевич Урвáнцев; – 20 February 1985) was a Soviet geologist and explorer. He was born in the town of Lukoyanov in the Lukoyanovsky Uyezd of the Nizhny Novgorod Gove ...
, the Norilsk river was probably given its former name, Norilka, in the 16th–17th centuries during the existence of the city
Mangazeya Mangazeya (russian: Мангазе́я) was a Northwest Siberian trans- Ural trade colony and later city in the 17th century. Founded in 1600 by Cossacks from Tobolsk, it was situated on the Taz River, between the lower courses of the Ob and Ye ...
, when the Taymyr was settled by Russian fishing people. It is likely that the name of the river comes from the word "''norilo''", a long thin pole that was used to stretch a string of trap nets from hole to hole under the ice. Some argue the name derives from the Yukagir word "''nerile''", meaning "an earthen hill, consisting of some crags, cliffs" (the mountains around Norilsk do indeed resemble "nerile"). According to another version, the name of the river (Norilka) and, accordingly, the city comes from the Evenk word "narus" or "nioril" in the Yukagir language, which means "swamps". It may also derive from the name of an Evenk tribe, the "Nyurilians", or from the nearby Lake Murilskoye.


History

People knew about the minerals in the Norilsk area as early as the Bronze Age - a site with primitive equipment for smelting and casting, as well as raw materials (balls of
native copper Native copper is an uncombined form of copper that occurs as a natural mineral. Copper is one of the few metallic elements to occur in native form, although it most commonly occurs in oxidized states and mixed with other elements. Native coppe ...
), has been discovered near Lake Pyasino. In the 16th-17th centuries, copper from the Norilsk deposits was used by the inhabitants of
Mangazeya Mangazeya (russian: Мангазе́я) was a Northwest Siberian trans- Ural trade colony and later city in the 17th century. Founded in 1600 by Cossacks from Tobolsk, it was situated on the Taz River, between the lower courses of the Ob and Ye ...
, a city located beyond the Arctic Circle on the
Taz River The Taz (russian: Таз) is a river located in western Siberia, has a length of and drains a basin estimated at . Its middle and lower course are located within Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, while its upper course borders with Krasnoyarsk Kra ...
, which was an important regional trading and craft center. During the excavations of Mangazeya in 1972-1975, Professor Mikhail Ivanovich Belov discovered a vast foundry yard. Platinoids were found in the remains of the copper wares unearthed there. Geologist and explorer
Nikolay Urvantsev Nikolay Nikolayevich Urvantsev (russian: Николáй Николáевич Урвáнцев; – 20 February 1985) was a Soviet geologist and explorer. He was born in the town of Lukoyanov in the Lukoyanovsky Uyezd of the Nizhny Novgorod Gove ...
carried out further study of the Norilsk region during expeditions in 1919-1926, which confirmed the presence of rich deposits of coal and polymetallic ores in the western spurs of the
Putorana Plateau The Putorana Plateau () or the Putorana Mountains is a mountainous area in the Russian Federation. It is a large massif or plateau crossed by mountain ranges. The nearest large settlement is Norilsk, where foreign travel is restricted. The cit ...
. In 1921, during one of Urvantsev's expeditions, a log cabin was built at the northern foot of Mount Schmidtikh. This hut is considered to be the first building in Norilsk. The cabin was later moved, and is now located near Norilsk Museum. It has the status of a historical monument. Norilsk was founded at the end of the 1920s, but the official date of the city's foundation is traditionally held to be 1935, when the
Norillag Norillag, Norilsk Corrective Labor Camp (russian: Норильлаг, Норильстрой, Норильский ИТЛ) was a gulag labor camp set by Norilsk, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia and headquartered there. It existed from June 25, 1935 to Aug ...
system of
Gulag The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= was the government agency in ...
labour camp A labor camp (or labour camp, see spelling differences) or work camp is a detention facility where inmates are forced to engage in penal labor as a form of punishment. Labor camps have many common aspects with slavery and with prisons (especi ...
was established and prisoners began construction work on the A.P. Zavenyagin Norilsk Mining and Metallurgical Plant. Over the next few years Norilsk grew into a settlement for the Norilsk mining and metallurgical complex, and it was granted
urban-type settlement Urban-type settlementrussian: посёлок городско́го ти́па, translit=posyolok gorodskogo tipa, abbreviated: russian: п.г.т., translit=p.g.t.; ua, селище міського типу, translit=selyshche mis'koho typu, ab ...
status in 1939 and city status in 1953. In the late 1940s, architects began to design a “new” city on the eastern shore of Lake Dolgoye, and Norillag prisoners started building work in 1951. In the summer of 1953, inmates from one of the Norillag camps,
Gorlag Gorlag or Gorny Camp Directorate, Special Camp No. 2 (Горлаг — Горный лагерь, Особый лагерь No. 2, Особлаг No. 2) ) was an MVD special camp for political prisoners within the Gulag system of the Soviet Union. ...
, went on strike, sparking the
Norilsk Uprising The Norilsk uprising was a major strike by Gulag inmates in Gorlag, a special camp mostly for political prisoners, and later in the two camps of Norillag TL Norilsk, USSR, now Russia, in the summer of 1953, shortly after Joseph Stalin's death. A ...
. In 1947, construction began on the Salekhard–Igarka Railway, a line intended to cross northern Siberia. The railway was to have linked the Arctic coal-mining city of
Vorkuta Vorkuta (russian: Воркута́; kv, Вӧркута, ''Vörkuta''; Nenets for "the abundance of bears", "bear corner") is a coal-mining town in the Komi Republic, Russia, situated just north of the Arctic Circle in the Pechora coal basin at ...
in European Russia to the Yenisei River via
Salekhard Salekhard (russian: Салеха́рд; Khanty: , ''Pułñawat''; yrk, Саляʼ харад, ''Saljaꜧ harad'') is a town in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Russia, serving as the okrug's administrative centre. It crosses the Arctic Circle, th ...
and the
Ob River } The Ob ( rus, Обь, p=opʲ: Ob') is a major river in Russia. It is in western Siberia; and together with Irtysh forms the world's List of rivers by length, seventh-longest river system, at . It forms at the confluence of the Biya (river), Biya ...
. A spacious railway station was built in Norilsk, in the expectation that the city would eventually have a train service to Moscow, but construction of the Salekhard–Igarka Railway was halted after
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...
died in 1953. To support the new city, the
Norilsk railway Norilsk Railway (russian: link=no, Норильская железная дорога) is a single-track railway and formerly the northernmost railway line in Russia. Main information The railway is in northern Krasnoyarsk Krai, southern Taimyr ...
to the port of
Dudinka Dudinka (russian: Дуди́нка; Nenets: Тут'ын, ''Tutꜧyn'') is a town on the Yenisei River and the administrative center of Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky District of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It used to be the administrative center of Ta ...
on the
Yenisei River The Yenisey (russian: Енисе́й, ''Yeniséy''; mn, Горлог мөрөн, ''Gorlog mörön''; Buryat: Горлог мүрэн, ''Gorlog müren''; Tuvan: Улуг-Хем, ''Uluğ-Hem''; Khakas: Ким суғ, ''Kim suğ''; Ket: Ӄук, ...
was built, first as a narrow-gauge line (winter 1935–36), later as a Russian standard gauge line (completed in the early 1950s).По рельсам истории
("Rolling on the rails of history"), ''Zapolyarnaya Pravda'', No. 109 (July 28, 2007)
Norillag was officially closed on August 22, 1956, by order No. 0348 of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. According to the Norillag archives, 16,806 prisoners died in Norilsk as a result of forced labor, starvation and intense cold during the years the camp was operational (1935–1956). Fatalities were especially high during World War II from 1942 to 1944 when food supplies were particularly scarce. An unknown, yet significant number of prisoners continued to work and die in the mines until around 1979. Several memorial structures have been erected in the city to commemorate Norilsk's Gulag past. The Russian author Boris Ivanov wrote about the most famous of them in his book ''Paying for Platinum'': "In the center of Norilsk, on Gvardeyskaya Square, 'in an atmosphere of solemnity', a foundation stone was even set, promising the construction of a monument on this spot to those who created the basis of the plant and this miracle city. This basalt block, weighing 100
poods ''Pood'' ( rus, пуд, r=pud, p=put, plural: or ) is a unit of mass equal to 40 ''funt'' (, Russian pound). Since 1899 it is set to approximately 16.38 kilograms (36.11 pounds). It was used in Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine. ''Pood'' was first m ...
(), delivered from Mount Rudnaya. On a plaque attached to it are the words: 'An obelisk will be built here, an eternal reminder of the feat of the Norilsk people who conquered the tundra, created our city and the plant'. The foundation stone was laid recently by historical standards, on June 26, 1966..." On July 17, 2020, a monument to the Metallurgists of Norilsk was unveiled at the site of the foundation stone. The foundation stone itself is part of the sculptural composition. In the 1980s, the Norilsk Golgotha memorial complex was built on the slope of Mount Schmidtikh to house the mass graves of the prisoners who founded the city.
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
and the (ex-Soviet)
Baltic states The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
have erected monuments to their countrymen who died here. Icon lamps also burn in an Orthodox chapel set on the mountainside. The discovery in 1966 of the Oktyabrskoye deposit of copper-nickel ores, located 40 kilometers northeast of Norilsk, was a milestone in the further development of the region. The mining settlement of
Talnakh Talnakh (russian: Талнах) was a town located about north of Norilsk at the foot of the Putoran Mountains in Taymyr Peninsula, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. In 2005 the town was merged into Norilsk. Population: It is the site of the mines se ...
was founded at the same time. A new complex, the Nadezhda Metallurgical Plant, was built 15 km west of Norilsk to process the raw materials from the new deposits. Work began in 1971 and the complex was finished in 1981. A number of Finnish companies assisted in the construction and automation of Norilsk's No. 2 copper and nickel smelters (in the Nadezhda complex), which led to substantial numbers of Finnish metallurgical and automation experts and their families coming to Norilsk from 1978 onward, creating a Finnish expat community of some hundreds of people for a couple of years. Today Talnakh is the area's major mining/enrichment site. Enriched ore emulsion is pumped from here to Norilsk's metallurgy plants. Enriched nickel and copper are transported from Dudinka to
Murmansk Murmansk (Russian: ''Мурманск'' lit. "Norwegian coast"; Finnish: ''Murmansk'', sometimes ''Muurmanski'', previously ''Muurmanni''; Norwegian: ''Norskekysten;'' Northern Sámi: ''Murmánska;'' Kildin Sámi: ''Мурман ланнҍ'') i ...
by sea, and from there to the
Monchegorsk Monchegorsk (russian: Мончего́рск) is a town in Murmansk Oblast, Russia, located on the Kola Peninsula, south of Murmansk, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: 52,242 ( 2002 Census); 68,652 ( 1989 Census). Name Th ...
enrichment and smelting plant on the
Kola Peninsula sjd, Куэлнэгк нёа̄ррк , image_name= Kola peninsula.png , image_caption= Kola Peninsula as a part of Murmansk Oblast , image_size= 300px , image_alt= , map_image= Murmansk in Russia.svg , map_caption = Location of Murmansk Oblas ...
, while more precious content goes upriver to
Krasnoyarsk Krasnoyarsk ( ; rus, Красноя́рск, a=Ru-Красноярск2.ogg, p=krəsnɐˈjarsk) (in semantic translation - Red Ravine City) is the largest city and administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is situated along the Yeni ...
. This transportation takes place only during the summer. The port of Dudinka is closed and dismantled during spring flooding in late May, when waters can rise by up to (a typical spring occurrence on all Siberian rivers, caused by winter ice obstructing meltwater from upstream). Norilsk-Talnakh continues to be a dangerous mine to work in. According to the mining company, there were 2.4 accidents per 1,000 workers in 2005. In 2017, Norilsk Nickel claimed that it had reduced its overall lost time injury frequency rate ( LTIFR) by almost 60% since 2013. In June 2020, 20,000 tons of
diesel fuel Diesel fuel , also called diesel oil, is any liquid fuel specifically designed for use in a diesel engine, a type of internal combustion engine in which fuel ignition takes place without a spark as a result of compression of the inlet air and t ...
spilled from the tank of an NTEK power plant, polluting hundreds of square kilometers and causing serious damage to the local ecosystem. Norilsk remains a
closed city A closed city or closed town is a settlement where travel or residency restrictions are applied so that specific authorization is required to visit or remain overnight. Such places may be sensitive military establishments or secret research ins ...
, and foreign citizens require special permission to visit the area.


Administrative and municipal status

Within the Russian system of administrative divisions, it is, together with the
urban-type settlement Urban-type settlementrussian: посёлок городско́го ти́па, translit=posyolok gorodskogo tipa, abbreviated: russian: п.г.т., translit=p.g.t.; ua, селище міського типу, translit=selyshche mis'koho typu, ab ...
of Snezhnogorsk, Krasnoyarsk Territory, incorporated as the district city of Norilsk—an administrative unit with a status equal to that of the
districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
.Law #10-4765 As a municipal division, the district city of Norilsk is incorporated as the Norilsk Urban Okrug.Law #12-2697 Since 2005, the city of Norilsk has been divided into three geographically disparate administrative districts: Central region (including Oganer) - 113,042
Talnakh Talnakh (russian: Талнах) was a town located about north of Norilsk at the foot of the Putoran Mountains in Taymyr Peninsula, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. In 2005 the town was merged into Norilsk. Population: It is the site of the mines se ...
- 48,478
Kayerkan Kayerkan (russian: Кайерка́н), located in the northern part of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia and in the southern part of the Taymyr Peninsula, was a town under jurisdiction of Norilsk Norilsk ( rus, Нори́льск, p=nɐˈrʲilʲsk, ''N ...
- 21,181


Government


Norilsk City Council of Deputies

Elected: 10.09.2017 Formed: 21.09.2017. Executive term: 5 years Chairman: Aleksandr Pestryakov Source: NORILSK CITY DEPUTY COUNCIL


Mayor of Norilsk

27.01.2021-present — Dmitry Karasyov. Executive term: 5 years.


Legislative Assembly of the Krasnoyarsk Territory

In September 2021, the composition of the Legislative Assembly of the Krasnoyarsk Territory was updated. Sergei Sizonenko was elected deputy for Taymyr constituency No. 23.


Demographics


Population

The population of Norilsk is The large population increase between the 2002 and the 2010 Censuses is due to the merger of the towns of
Kayerkan Kayerkan (russian: Кайерка́н), located in the northern part of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia and in the southern part of the Taymyr Peninsula, was a town under jurisdiction of Norilsk Norilsk ( rus, Нори́льск, p=nɐˈrʲilʲsk, ''N ...
and
Talnakh Talnakh (russian: Талнах) was a town located about north of Norilsk at the foot of the Putoran Mountains in Taymyr Peninsula, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. In 2005 the town was merged into Norilsk. Population: It is the site of the mines se ...
into Norilsk in December 2004
After the fall of the
USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
the population dropped by 40,000, but this was offset by the subsequent merger of the towns of
Kayerkan Kayerkan (russian: Кайерка́н), located in the northern part of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia and in the southern part of the Taymyr Peninsula, was a town under jurisdiction of Norilsk Norilsk ( rus, Нори́льск, p=nɐˈrʲilʲsk, ''N ...
and
Talnakh Talnakh (russian: Талнах) was a town located about north of Norilsk at the foot of the Putoran Mountains in Taymyr Peninsula, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. In 2005 the town was merged into Norilsk. Population: It is the site of the mines se ...
into Norilsk, maintaining a permanent population of 175,000. Including temporary residents, the population can reach up to 220,000. Life expectancy for local residents is about 10 years less than average Russian life expectancy, which as of 2013 was around 69 years.


Ethnic composition

The city has an ethnically diverse population. As of 2010, the predominant ethnic and cultural groups were Russians, Ukrainians, Azerbaijanis, Tatars, Lezgins, Chuvash, Bashkirs, Belarusians, Ossetians, Nogai, and Kazakhs. The population of Norilsk consists almost entirely of people who moved to the city in the second half of the 20th century and their descendants, but many of the descendants of prisoners who were amnestied in 1953 still live in the city. There are very few representatives of indigenous ethnicities - Nenets, Enets, Nganasans and Dolgans - in the city. There were 77 recognized ethnic groups in Norilsk as of 2010. As of January 1, 2021, in terms of population, the city ranked 103rd out of 1,116 cities in the Russian Federation. Source — FEDERAL SERVICE OF STATE STATISTICS


Religion

Orthodox Christianity Orthodoxy (from Ancient Greek, Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Late antiquity, A ...
is the main religion in Norilsk. There is a Russian Orthodox cathedral, several Russian Orthodox churches and a
Ukrainian Orthodox church The history of Christianity in Ukraine dates back to the earliest centuries of the history of Christianity, to the Apostolic Age, with mission trips along the Black Sea and a legend of Saint Andrew even ascending the hills of Kyiv. The first Chr ...
. There is also a mosque in Norilsk. Built in 1998 and belonging to the local
Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary
is an umbrella term for different
community, it is considered to be the northernmost Muslim prayer house in the world. Since 2014, the city has been the center of the newly formed Norilsk Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church.


Time zone

Norilsk is on
Krasnoyarsk Time, seven hours ahead of UTC (UTC+07:00) and 4 hours ahead of Moscow Time (MSK+4)


Geography and natural environment

Norilsk sits between the
West Siberian Plain The West Siberian Plain (russian: За́падно-Сиби́рская равни́на ''Zapadno-Sibirskaya ravnina'') is a large plain that occupies the western portion of Siberia, between the Ural Mountains in the west and the Yenisei River ...
and
Central Siberian Plateau The Central Siberian Plateau (russian: Среднесибирское плоскогорье, Srednesibirskoye ploskogorye; sah, Орто Сибиир хаптал хайалаах сирэ) is a vast mountainous area in Siberia, one of the Gre ...
at the foot of the Putorana Mountains. It is one of the world's most northerly settlements and is both the largest city built on
permafrost Permafrost is ground that continuously remains below 0 °C (32 °F) for two or more years, located on land or under the ocean. Most common in the Northern Hemisphere, around 15% of the Northern Hemisphere or 11% of the global surface ...
and the largest city inside the
Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...
. Norilsk has an extremely harsh
subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, ge ...
(according to the
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
, it is between subarctic (Dfc) to tundra (ET)). It is one of the coldest cities in the world – far colder than Murmansk, which is located at almost the same latitude. As a result of Norilsk's geographical isolation on the Taimyr Peninsula, the rest of Russia is usually referred to as “the mainland”, and expressions like “move to the mainland” or “on the mainland” are common among locals.


Climate

Despite being located inside the
Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...
, Norilsk has a
subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, ge ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
''Dfc'') with very long, extremely cold winters (from early October to May) and very short, mild summers. Norilsk experiences negative temperatures for about 240 days a year, and snow cover lasts from seven to nine months, with more than 50 days of snowstorms. Strong winds are common. The average temperature in January is about -27 °C. The
midnight sun The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle, when the Sun remains visible at the local midnight. When the midnight sun is seen in the Arctic, t ...
is above the horizon from May 20 to July 24, and the time when the sun does not rise,
polar night The polar night is a phenomenon where the nighttime lasts for more than 24 hours that occurs in the northernmost and southernmost regions of Earth. This occurs only inside the polar circles. The opposite phenomenon, the polar day, or midnig ...
, lasts from approximately November 30 to January 13. Summer is short (mid-July) and cool, with an average July high of +14.3°C, though temperatures can sometimes rise above . Norilsk has an average annual air temperature of −9.6 °C, with an annual variation of absolute temperatures of 85 °C. The average annual relative humidity is about 76%. Much of the surrounding area is naturally treeless
tundra In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless moun ...
, and there are very few trees in the city itself.


Norilsk-Talnakh nickel deposits

The
nickel Nickel is a chemical element with symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel is a hard and ductile transition metal. Pure nickel is chemically reactive but large pieces are slow to ...
deposits of Norilsk-
Talnakh Talnakh (russian: Талнах) was a town located about north of Norilsk at the foot of the Putoran Mountains in Taymyr Peninsula, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. In 2005 the town was merged into Norilsk. Population: It is the site of the mines se ...
are the largest-known nickel-copper-palladium deposits in the world. The deposit was formed 250 million years ago during the eruption of the
Siberian Traps The Siberian Traps (russian: Сибирские траппы, Sibirskiye trappy) is a large region of volcanic rock, known as a large igneous province, in Siberia, Russia. The massive eruptive event that formed the traps is one of the largest ...
igneous province (STIP). The STIP erupted over one million cubic kilometers of lava, a large portion of it through a series of flat-lying lava conduits below Norilsk and the Talnakh Mountains. The current resource known for these mineralized intrusion exceeds 1.8 billion tons. Norilsk is a center of non-ferrous metallurgy and is home to mining giant
Norilsk Nickel Norilsk Nickel (russian: ГМК «Норильский никель»), or Nornickel, is a Russian nickel and palladium mining and smelting company. Its largest operations are located in the Norilsk–Talnakh area near the Yenisei River in the no ...
's mining operations. The smelting of the nickel ore is directly responsible for severe pollution, which generally takes the form of acid rain and smog. By some estimates, Norilsk's nickel mines produce 1 percent of global
sulfur dioxide Sulfur dioxide (IUPAC-recommended spelling) or sulphur dioxide (traditional Commonwealth English) is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a toxic gas responsible for the odor of burnt matches. It is released naturally by volcanic activ ...
() emissions.


Ecology

Norilsk is a city with an extremely unfavorable ecological and environmental situation, but recent initiatives have begun to tackle some of the region's most serious pollution issues.


Pollution

Russia's
Federal State Statistics Service The Federal State Statistics Service (russian: Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Росстат), ''Federal'naya sluzhba gosudarstvennoi statistiki (Rosstat)'') is the governmental statistics ...
lists Norilsk as the most polluted city in Russia. In 2017, Norilsk produced 1.798 million tons of carbon pollutants—nearly six times more than the 304,600 tons that was generated by Russia's second-most polluted city, Cherepovets. Norilsk, the report states, decontaminates almost half of its emissions. In addition, the
Blacksmith Institute Pure Earth is a New York City-based international not-for-profit organization founded in 1999 that works to identify, clean up, and solve pollution problems in low- and middle-income countries, where high concentrations of toxic pollution have dev ...
has included Norilsk in its list of the 10 most polluted places on Earth. The list cites
air pollution Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are many different types ...
by particulates, including
radioisotope A radionuclide (radioactive nuclide, radioisotope or radioactive isotope) is a nuclide that has excess nuclear energy, making it unstable. This excess energy can be used in one of three ways: emitted from the nucleus as gamma radiation; transferr ...
s
strontium Strontium is the chemical element with the symbol Sr and atomic number 38. An alkaline earth metal, strontium is a soft silver-white yellowish metallic element that is highly chemically reactive. The metal forms a dark oxide layer when it is ex ...
-90, and
caesium Caesium (IUPAC spelling) (or cesium in American English) is a chemical element with the symbol Cs and atomic number 55. It is a soft, silvery-golden alkali metal with a melting point of , which makes it one of only five elemental metals that a ...
-137; the metals nickel,
copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...
,
cobalt Cobalt is a chemical element with the symbol Co and atomic number 27. As with nickel, cobalt is found in the Earth's crust only in a chemically combined form, save for small deposits found in alloys of natural meteoric iron. The free element, pr ...
, and
lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
;
selenium Selenium is a chemical element with the symbol Se and atomic number 34. It is a nonmetal (more rarely considered a metalloid) with properties that are intermediate between the elements above and below in the periodic table, sulfur and tellurium, ...
; and by gases (such as
nitrogen Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at se ...
and
carbon Carbon () is a chemical element with the symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalent In chemistry, the valence (US spelling) or valency (British spelling) of an element is the measure of its combining capacity with o ...
oxide An oxide () is a chemical compound that contains at least one oxygen atom and one other element in its chemical formula. "Oxide" itself is the dianion of oxygen, an O2– (molecular) ion. with oxygen in the oxidation state of −2. Most of the E ...
s, sulfur dioxide,
phenols In organic chemistry, phenols, sometimes called phenolics, are a class of chemical compounds consisting of one or more hydroxyl groups (— O H) bonded directly to an aromatic hydrocarbon group. The simplest is phenol, . Phenolic compounds are c ...
and
hydrogen sulfide Hydrogen sulfide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless chalcogen-hydride gas, and is poisonous, corrosive, and flammable, with trace amounts in ambient atmosphere having a characteristic foul odor of rotten eggs. The unde ...
). The Institute estimates that 4 million tons of cadmium, copper, lead, nickel, arsenic, selenium and zinc are released into the air every year. Nickel ore is smelted at the company's processing site at Norilsk. This smelting is directly responsible for severe pollution, which generally comes in the form of acid rain and smog. By some estimates, Norilsk's nickel mines produce 1 percent of global sulfur dioxide emissions. Heavy metal pollution near Norilsk is so severe that it has now become economically feasible to mine surface soil, as the soil has acquired such high concentrations of platinum and palladium. According to an April 2007 BBC News report, Norilsk Nickel accepted personal responsibility for what had happened to the forests around the city, and insisted that the company was implementing measures to reduce pollution. In 2016, company chairman
Vladimir Potanin Vladimir Olegovich Potanin (russian: Владимир Олегович Потанин; born 3 January 1961) is a Russian billionaire businessman. He acquired his wealth notably through the controversial loans-for-shares program in Russia in ...
admitted that environmental issues were the company's biggest problem. In September 2016, images surfaced on social media of the nearby
Daldykan The Daldykan (russian: Далдыкан or Долдыкан ''Doldykan'') is a river close to Norilsk in Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky District, Krasnoyarsk Krai in Russia, a right tributary of the Ambarnaya. It is long, and has a drainage basin o ...
River, which had turned red. Russia's Environment Ministry issued a statement claiming that preliminary evidence pointed towards Nornickel-owned wastewater pipes from a nearby smelting plant as the source of the contamination. The company referred to intense rainfall and insisted that the incident of sedimentary coloring presented no danger to people or wildlife. The smelting plant, the company said, was in the process of being modernized. Nonetheless, accusations of illegal waste dumping continue to plague the company.


Environmental initiatives

The closure of the nickel plant in June 2016 was an important step toward the improvement of the environmental situation in the city, and made it possible to cut annual pollutant emissions from the plant by about 400,000 tons. Norilsk Nickel has stated that the total emissions of its Russian operations were 6% lower in 2016 than in 2015, primarily thanks to the shutdown of the smelter. Following the completion of a large-scale project to upgrade the Talnakh concentrator, the enterprise's capacity has grown by more than 30%, from 7.6 to 10.2 million tons of ore per year. In addition to achieving higher production rates, the goal of the modernization was also to reduce the negative impact on the environment by increasing the recovery of sulfur from ore to tailings. In 2017, Norilsk Nickel announced that it had invested $14 billion in a major development program aimed at reducing sulfur dioxide emissions in Norilsk by 75% by 2023, using 2015 as a base year. One of the bigger steps taken to combat pollution was the closure of Nornickel's old smelter in Norilsk, the main source of SO2 emissions within the city boundaries since 1942. In 2018, Norilsk Nickel announced the Sulfur Project, which includes the modernization of the Copper Plant, located within the city, and the relocation of blister copper production to the Nadezhda plant, outside the city. Norilsk's Arena sports and entertainment complex has a showroom where you can see information about the Sulfur Program and Norilsk Nickel's other environmental projects. In 2021, the Clean Norilsk project was launched, with the support of Federal Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology Alexander Kozlov. The aim of the initiative is to demolish about 500 abandoned buildings and structures, and remove about 2 million square meters of industrial waste. The Clean Norilsk project was included in the nationwide environmental program Clean Arctic.


May 2020 diesel spill

On May 29, 2020 a fuel reservoir owned by Nornickel subsidiary NTEK at CHPP-3 ruptured during depressurization, spilling approximately 21,000 tons of diesel fuel and directly threatening the ecosystem of the Arctic Ocean. It was one of the largest oil spills in Russian history. As a result of the leak, according to preliminary estimates, 6,000 tons soaked into the ground, and 15,000 tons leaked into the nearby
Ambarnaya River The Ambarnaya (russian: Амбарная, translation=barn girl) is a river in Siberia which flows in a northerly direction into Lake Pyasino. On leaving Lake Pyasino, the waters emerge as the river Pyasina. It shares a common delta with the riv ...
and Daldykan River. By June 3, according to Rosprirodnadzor, the maximum permissible concentration of harmful substances in the water of the Ambarnaya River exceeded the norm by tens of thousands of times.
Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...
, the Russian president, declared a state of emergency. The fuel was a reserve used as a backup for the main gas supply to a power plant. The storage tank was built on
permafrost Permafrost is ground that continuously remains below 0 °C (32 °F) for two or more years, located on land or under the ocean. Most common in the Northern Hemisphere, around 15% of the Northern Hemisphere or 11% of the global surface ...
, which, according to a statement by the company, could possibly have melted and become unstable due to climate change. An area of 350 square kilometers (135 square miles) was contaminated and it is proving difficult to clean up the area because there are no roads and the river is too shallow for boats and barges.
Oleg Mitvol Oleg Lvovich Mitvol (russian: Олег Львович Митволь) (born October 3, 1966) is a Russian environmentalist, businessman and government official, known for his activity in the chair of environmental protection department. Career Me ...
, former deputy head of Rosprirodnadzor, estimated that the clean-up would cost about 100 billion rubles (US$1.5 billion) and take 5–10 years. Vice-speaker of the Taymyr Duma Sergey Sizonenko noted that about 700 of Taymyr's indigenous people live in the affected area. As a result of the proceedings, Norilsk Nickel was obliged to pay a fine of 146 billion rubles, which went into the federal budget of the Russian Federation, rather than the budget of the municipality. On August 26, 2021, the head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation Alexander Chupriyan announced that clean-up work was complete.


Water

At the beginning of 2020, 43 water treatment facilities were operational in Norilsk. The system is constantly being upgraded. The modernization work is partly funded by Norilsk Nickel.


Economy

MMC Norilsk Nickel Norilsk Nickel (russian: ГМК «Норильский никель»), or Nornickel, is a Russian nickel and palladium mining and smelting company. Its largest operations are located in the Norilsk–Talnakh area near the Yenisei River in the no ...
(formerly the Norilsk Mining and Metallurgical Combine), a
mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...
company, is the principal employer in the Norilsk area. Norilsk is a major center of non-ferrous metallurgy; the following non-ferrous metals are mined here: copper, nickel, cobalt; precious metals: palladium, osmium, platinum, gold, silver, iridium, rhodium, ruthenium; by-products: technical sulfur, metallic selenium and tellurium, sulfuric acid. The company produces 35% of the world's palladium, 25% of its platinum, 20% of its nickel, 20% of its rhodium, and 10% of its cobalt. In Russia, 96% of nickel, 95% of cobalt, and 55% of copper is produced by Norilsk Nickel. In 2007 the total volume of commodities produced and services carried out by the company in various manufacturing industries amounted to 321.5 billion rubles. In 2021 Norilsk Nickel's net profit increased by 92% to $6.974 billion. The Norilsk industrial region has all the necessary infrastructure for the production of non-ferrous metals: electric power, hydropower, industrial construction and building material production, and repair and service enterprises. Energy is supplied from the Norilsk CHPP-1, CHPP-2, and CHPP-3 combined cycle power plants, which are located in different parts of the city and are owned by Norilsk Nickel. The company's industrial enterprises are the principal consumers of electricity in the city.


Transport

The city is served by
Alykel Airport Alykel Airport (russian: Аэропорт Алыкель) is a large airport in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located west of Norilsk. Alykel is the only functional airfield near Norilsk. It handles medium-sized aircraft and is serviced by 24-hour ...
and Valek Airport. The
Norilsk railway Norilsk Railway (russian: link=no, Норильская железная дорога) is a single-track railway and formerly the northernmost railway line in Russia. Main information The railway is in northern Krasnoyarsk Krai, southern Taimyr ...
links Norilsk to the port of Dudinka on the
Yenisei River The Yenisey (russian: Енисе́й, ''Yeniséy''; mn, Горлог мөрөн, ''Gorlog mörön''; Buryat: Горлог мүрэн, ''Gorlog müren''; Tuvan: Улуг-Хем, ''Uluğ-Hem''; Khakas: Ким суғ, ''Kim suğ''; Ket: Ӄук, ...
, but has been freight-only since 1998. There is a road network around Norilsk (such as the A-382 which links to Dudinka and Norilsk Alykel Airport), but the city is not connected to the rest of Russia by road or rail. In essence, Norilsk and Dudinka are an island. As there is no overland communication with the "Big Land", groups of enthusiasts make road trips to Norilsk in off-road vehicles from other cities in Russia. Freight is transported to and from Norilsk via Dudinka by boat on the Arctic Ocean or on the Yenisei. Dudinka is connected by sea with
Arkhangelsk Arkhangelsk (, ; rus, Арха́нгельск, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲsk), also known in English as Archangel and Archangelsk, is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies o ...
and
Murmansk Murmansk (Russian: ''Мурманск'' lit. "Norwegian coast"; Finnish: ''Murmansk'', sometimes ''Muurmanski'', previously ''Muurmanni''; Norwegian: ''Norskekysten;'' Northern Sámi: ''Murmánska;'' Kildin Sámi: ''Мурман ланнҍ'') i ...
year-round, and by river with
Krasnoyarsk Krasnoyarsk ( ; rus, Красноя́рск, a=Ru-Красноярск2.ogg, p=krəsnɐˈjarsk) (in semantic translation - Red Ravine City) is the largest city and administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is situated along the Yeni ...
and Dikson during the summer navigation period. Norilsk has a municipal bus network, and there is also a bus service to Dudinka. Several dozen taxi firms operate in the city. In bad weather, workers from Norilsk Nickel's industrial enterprises, which are located outside the city, are transported to and from the sites in off-road vehicles.


Norilsk Airport

Norilsk (Alykel) airport is located 35 kilometers west of the city center. Large-scale reconstruction in 2005-2008 upgraded the passenger terminal building to a modern international standard. In 2016-2018, a large-scale project was carried out to upgrade the airport's runway. This has made it possible to increase the airport's capacity, offer more flights and increase air safety. In the summer of 2020, reconstruction work began on the airport as part of a state program to develop Russia's transport network. Total investment amounts to more than 12.5 billion rubles (of which 5.8 billion rubles has been invested by Norilsk Nickel). The vehicle license plate code for Norilsk is 24 RUS and 124 RUS.


Communication

Norilsk has a six-digit telephone numbering plan. All districts of the city are connected by a single telephone network. Fixed-line communications for the population and organizations are provided by MTS, Norilsk Telecom, NN-Infocom, and Rostelecom. Cellular communication began to develop relatively late in Norilsk: the first operator, Yeniseitelecom, began offering services only in December 2001. There are currently four mobile operators in the city: Yeniseitelecom (since 2001; since 2012 - under the Rostelecom brand; since July 31, 2015 - Tele2 Russia), Beeline (since 2002), MTS (since 2003) and MegaFon (since 2006). All of them, in addition to GSM communications, also provide third-generation services in the UMTS standards (Beeline, MTS and MegaFon, Tele2 Russia) and IMT-MC-450 (Tele2 Russia). Apart from MTS, all these mobile operators, built their own networks from scratch. MTS entered the Norilsk market as a result of the purchase of LLC Sibchallenge (the Taymyrsky Telefon (TT) brand) in 2003. Since September 22, 2017, communication with the "mainland" has been carried out via fiber optic transmission; before that, communication could only be carried out via satellite channels; there were no cable lines connecting Norilsk with other cities. A characteristic feature of Norilsk's cable network is the presence of communication cables in sewage pipes (on the surface); on the "mainland" the cables are laid in a cable duct. Norilsk's troposcatter communication station was dismantled in the first half of the 2000s. Since 2017, internet connection speeds have improved due to the installation of a 957-km (595 mi) communications cable laid along the
Yenisei River The Yenisey (russian: Енисе́й, ''Yeniséy''; mn, Горлог мөрөн, ''Gorlog mörön''; Buryat: Горлог мүрэн, ''Gorlog müren''; Tuvan: Улуг-Хем, ''Uluğ-Hem''; Khakas: Ким суғ, ''Kim suğ''; Ket: Ӄук, ...
toward
Krasnoyarsk Krasnoyarsk ( ; rus, Красноя́рск, a=Ru-Красноярск2.ogg, p=krəsnɐˈjarsk) (in semantic translation - Red Ravine City) is the largest city and administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is situated along the Yeni ...
. On June 3, 2019, the city switched to digital television, and most TV channels stopped broadcasting using an analogue signal.


Fiber optic communication

Until 2017, Norilsk was the last major city in Russia without high-speed internet access - access to the network was provided by a satellite channel with a speed of only 1 GB/s. The laying of a fiber optic line was complicated by the long distance (956 km) and severe weather conditions (up to -60 degrees in winter). The country's "big three" telecom operators did not dare to undertake the project, which was instead handled by the
Norilsk Nickel Norilsk Nickel (russian: ГМК «Норильский никель»), or Nornickel, is a Russian nickel and palladium mining and smelting company. Its largest operations are located in the Norilsk–Talnakh area near the Yenisei River in the no ...
subsidiary Unity. Broadband internet started working in the city in September 2017. The launch was attended by Minister of Telecom and Mass Communications Nikolay Nikiforov and President of Norilsk Nickel
Vladimir Potanin Vladimir Olegovich Potanin (russian: Владимир Олегович Потанин; born 3 January 1961) is a Russian billionaire businessman. He acquired his wealth notably through the controversial loans-for-shares program in Russia in ...
. Connectivity is now 40 times faster - up to 40 GB/s. The construction of the fiber optic line cost Norilsk Nickel 2.5 billion rubles, an investment that will not pay off, according to Russian business daily Vedomosti.


Education

Norilsk has a number of higher education institutions: * * Zabaikalsky State University Polytechnic College * Norilsk College of Arts * Norilsk Pedagogical College * Norilsk Medical College * Norilsk College of Industrial Technologies and Service There are also several branches of higher educational institutions based in other Russian cities. The city has 80 institutions in the general education system: 38 pre-school educational and 29 secondary schools, six preparatory schools, one lyceum, and six further education institutions (the Station for Young Technicians, the Center for Extracurricular Activities, the House of Children's Creativity, the Social and Educational Center, the Station for Children's and Youth Tourism and Excursions, and the Palace of Creativity for Children and Youth). There are 41 municipal budgetary autonomous preschool educational institutions in Norilsk, including the Child Development Center. Ten of the city's general education institutions offer specialized professional development classes.


Culture

Norilsk has a wide range of cultural institutions, including the Norilsk Museum and exhibition complex (which includes an art gallery and the "First House of Norilsk" house-museum), the Norilsk Municipal Cultural Center, the Norilsk Polar Drama Theater, the Norilsk Youth Theater & Studio, cinemas, a sports and entertainment complex, a music school, and art schools for children and adults, as well as many monuments and historical buildings. The Norilsk Polar Drama Theater is one of the world's most northernmost theaters. Founded in 1941 in Norillag, the troupe originally consisted mainly of prisoners. Artists such as
Georgiy Zhzhonov Georgiy Stepanovich Zhzhonov (russian: Гео́ргий Степа́нович Жжёнов, ; 22 March 1915 – 8 December 2005), was a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor and writer. He is known for playing the spy Mikhail Tulyev in the "R ...
(1949-1953, after imprisonment), E. Urusova (1950-1954, after imprisonment),
Innokenty Smoktunovsky Innokenty Mikhailovich Smoktunovsky (russian: Иннокентий Михайлович Смоктуновский; born ''Smoktunovich'', 28 March 19253 August 1994) was a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor. He was named a People's Artist ...
(1946-1951), V. Lukyanov, and V. Abramitskaya, E. Mokienko, A. Shcheglov, and I. Rozovsky all performed in the Norilsk Drama Theater at one time. From 1954-1962, Honored Artist of the RSFSR Efim Gelfand was the chief director of the theater. The theater also collaborated with
Grigory Gorin Grigori Gorin (russian: Григо́рий Го́рин), real name Grigori Israilevich Ofshtein (russian: Григо́рий Изра́илевич Офштейн; March 12, 1940, Moscow — June 15, 2000, Moscow) was a Soviet and Russian playw ...
and
Yuli Kim Yuliy Chersanovich Kim (russian: Юлий Черсанович Ким, ko, 율리 킴; born 23 December 1936, Moscow) is a Russian bard, composer, poet, and songwriter. His songs, encompassing everything from mild humor to biting political sat ...
, whose musical "How the Soldier Ivan Chonkin Guarded the Plane," based on
Vladimir Voinovich Vladimir Nikolayevich Voinovich (russian: Влади́мир Никола́евич Войно́вич, 26 September 1932 – 27 July 2018), was a Russian writer and former Soviet dissident, and the "first genuine comic writer" produced by the S ...
's novel The Life and Extraordinary Adventures of Private Ivan Chonkin, was staged in Norilsk for the first time and awarded the Golden Ostap Prize at a satire and humor festival in St. Petersburg (1997). In 2009, the Norilsk Polar Drama Theater was classified as a cultural heritage site of special value in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. The city hosts several annual major cultural and entertainment festivals, such as the Bolshoi Argish festival, the Land is Our Common Home festival, and others. Norilsk's library system has been recognized as the best in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Libraries are found in every district of the city. Exhibitions, concerts, creative gatherings, performances by local groups and touring artists regularly take place at the museum and exhibition complex, the Norilsk Municipal Cultural Center, and other cultural and leisure centers in the city. As in other cities built around metallurgical enterprises, Metallurgist's Day (July 17) is an important festival. Members of indigenous northern ethnicities (Nenets, Dolgans, etc.) celebrate the festival of Heiro, which marks the return of the sun to the sky after the polar night. In June 2021, Norilsk Nickel announced a RUB 4 billion project to create an Arctic Museum of Contemporary Art (AMMA), which includes the reconstruction of the House of Trade building and the opening of an 8,500-square-meter museum.


Architecture

The head of the Norilsk camps,
Avraami Zavenyagin Lieutenant-General Avraami Pavlovich Zavenyagin (1 May 1901, Uzlovaya – 31 December 1956; his first name is also sometimes given as Avram or Abraham) was a leading figure in the Soviet nuclear projects of the 1940s and 1950s. Richard Lee Mi ...
, was made responsible for restructuring the camp barracks into a full-fledged city. The architects - Gevorg Kochar, Mikael Mazmanyan, Olgerd Trushinsh - were prisoners of
Norillag Norillag, Norilsk Corrective Labor Camp (russian: Норильлаг, Норильстрой, Норильский ИТЛ) was a gulag labor camp set by Norilsk, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia and headquartered there. It existed from June 25, 1935 to Aug ...
. They were supervised by Vitold Nepokoichitsky, who arrived from Leningrad in 1939, so the first blocks to be constructed in the city were built in the neoclassical style and resemble St. Petersburg. Nepokoichitsky's wife, Lydia Minenko, also made a notable contribution. Local features such as Lake Dolgoye and reservoirs in the southwestern district were taken into account in the masterplan. The layout of the city was based on a main avenue, interrupted in places by squares. One of the main challenges was to minimize the impact of strong winds. The first solutions were unsuccessful (it was initially assumed that snow would be swept out along the city's streets, which were specially laid out along the axes of the prevailing winds, but the winds turned out to be too strong, and there was too much snow). After that, the decision was taken to use compact perimeter blocks, which determined the appearance of the city. In the 1960s, districts of standardized panel housing were built in the outskirts of Norilsk. The city is unusual in that its gas and water pipes, which are typically laid underground elsewhere, run overground. This is due to the problems created by the seasonal melting and freezing of the top layer of permafrost. The city center is dominated by buildings in neoclassical style, with outlying residential areas consisting of
tower blocks A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdicti ...
.


Effects of thawing permafrost

Rising Arctic temperatures are causing permafrost to thaw, cracking foundations and making many of the city's buildings increasingly unstable. In response, regional authorities have announced a 650-million-ruble (€7.9 million) thermal stabilisation program for 10 Norilsk apartment buildings whose foundations are under threat. The system consists of a network of pipes through which refrigerant circulates, helping to freeze the foundations in the ground. Soil cooling systems were installed alongside two buildings in 2019 and 2020, and the thermal stabilisation program is scheduled to be completed in 2024.


Media


Television

The Norilsk Television Station broadcasts the signal from Russia’s First and Second Digital Multiplexes in the DVB-T2 format. On November 16, 2020, the city launched Norilsk TV, its first municipal round-the-clock channel, broadcast by local cable operators MTS and Norсom under number 24. Another local channel, Severny Gorod Norilsk (“The Northern City of Norilsk”) presents its news broadcasts on the Klyuch channel several times a day. Until August 2019, news was produced and broadcast by the GTRK Norilsk Television and Radio Company, a division of VGTRK that was subsequently closed due to reorganization.


Radio stations

* 72.68 MHz —
Radio Mayak Radio Mayak is a radio broadcasting company in Russia, owned by VGTRK. Mayak is the Russian word for "lighthouse" or "beacon". As well as Radio Mayak proper (which broadcasts news, talk shows, and popular music), the company is also responsible f ...
(silent) * 87.5 MHz —
Radio Mayak Radio Mayak is a radio broadcasting company in Russia, owned by VGTRK. Mayak is the Russian word for "lighthouse" or "beacon". As well as Radio Mayak proper (which broadcasts news, talk shows, and popular music), the company is also responsible f ...
* 87.9 MHz —
Radio Rossii Radio Rossii (russian: Радио России, ''Radio of Russia'') is the primary public radio station in Russia. History Radio Rossii began broadcasting on December 10, 1990. The radio station is part of the state-owned unitary enterprise ...
/ GTRK Krasnoyarsk (
Kayerkan Kayerkan (russian: Кайерка́н), located in the northern part of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia and in the southern part of the Taymyr Peninsula, was a town under jurisdiction of Norilsk Norilsk ( rus, Нори́льск, p=nɐˈrʲilʲsk, ''N ...
) * 90.3 MHz — Vesti FМ * 91.1 MHz —
Nashe Radio Nashe Radio (russian: Наше радио, ''Our Radio'', pronounced ''Nashe radio'') is a Russian Rock music radio station. It was designed to promote Russian rock bands, as opposed to pop and Western music. Nashe is based in Moscow and broadca ...
* 91.5 MHz — Novoye Radio * 101.0 MHz — Hit FM * 101.4 MHz —
Radio Rossii Radio Rossii (russian: Радио России, ''Radio of Russia'') is the primary public radio station in Russia. History Radio Rossii began broadcasting on December 10, 1990. The radio station is part of the state-owned unitary enterprise ...
/ GTRK Krasnoyarsk * 102.0 MHz — Love Radio * 102.5 MHz — Dorozhnoye Radio * 103.0 MHz — Delta Radio * 103.5 MHz — Megapolis FM * 104.0 MHz —
Russkoye Radio ''Russkoye Radio'' (russian: Русское радио, in English: Russian Radio) is a Russian radio station, broadcasting in some CIS countries. It differs from other similar stations since it broadcasts songs almost exclusively in Russian. In ...
* 104.5 MHz — Radio Iskatel * 105.0 MHz —
Europa Plus Europa Plus () is a Russian commercial radio station. It is owned by the European Media Group and started broadcasting on 30 April 1990. It is mainly formatted with Hot AC and Top 40. Europa Plus began brodcasting in the USSR in 1990. Europa P ...
* 105.7 MHz —
Radio ENERGY Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
* 106.0 MHz —
AvtoRadio AvtoRadio (russian: Авторадио) is a Moscow-based radio station. The station plays songs in Russian and English. A variety of music from different genres. History It broadcasts music and information. It started broadcasting on 5 April 19 ...
* 106.5 MHz — Radio Dacha * 107.0 MHz — Radio Shanson * 107.4 MHz — Radio Vera * 107.8 MHz — Retro FM


Print publications

Norilsk’s city newspaper, ''Zapolyarnaya Pravda'', was founded in 1953. Since then, the newspaper has been a source of relevant information on the city's day-to-day life, the operation of its enterprises and organizations, and its residents’ lives. Apart from ''Zapolyarnaya Pravda'', the local print-based press consists of free papers containing adverts and commercial information.


Healthcare

Norilsk's residents enjoy a full range of public healthcare services offered by institutions that report to the Ministry of Healthcare of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. All city districts have outpatient clinics for children and adults, emergency rooms, and dentist clinics. An inter-district children's hospital is also available. The city operates a blood center. The healthcare sector also features a broad range of private institutions offering a variety of services. Norilsk's largest hospital is the general city hospital (KGBUZ Norilsk Interdistrict Hospital No. 1), located in the Oganer residential area. In December 2018, Norilsk completed the construction of a maternity center. December 2021 saw the inauguration of the first of five healthcare centers Nornickel had promised to build. The remaining four are expected to start operating before 2025.


Sport

The city is proud of its futsal club,
MFK Norilsk Nickel Norilsky Nickel is a professional futsal club competing in the Russian Futsal Super League The Russian Futsal Superleague (russian: Чемпионат России по мини-футболу (Суперлига), Superliga; complete official n ...
, which competes in the
Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...
. Founded in 1993, the club's current president is Pavel Belkin. Norilsk Nickel won the Russian championship in the 2001/2002 and made it to the Russian Cup finals in 1999/2000, 2014/15, and 2017/18, eventually winning the trophy in 2019/20. In 2020/2021, the team came third in the Russian championship. In 2021, Norilsk hosted a basketball match between a representative team from the Norilsk division and
PBC CSKA Moscow PBC CSKA Moscow (russian: ПБК ЦСКА Москва) is a Russian professional basketball team based in Moscow, Russia. The club is a member of the VTB United League, and was a member of the EuroLeague. On February 28, 2022, EuroLeague Basketb ...
. The city's range of sports amenities includes the Arktika multidisciplinary sports palace; swimming pools in the Central District, Talnakh, and Kayerkan; the Zapolyarnik outdoor stadium; the BOKMO sports complex; the House of Physical Education in the city center; the Ldinka indoor skating rink; the Solnyshko stadium; and many more sports clubs and centers with a variety of opportunities for sports and fitness. For winter sports Norilsk has the Ol-Gul professional skiing center, the Oganer ski lodge, and the Gora Otdelnaya ski resort. In the summer, suburban tourist centers offer outdoor sports facilities for children and grown-ups. The city also has a junior sports academy. In 2006, construction work began on a multi-purpose stadium in Metallurgov Square. It was later transformed into the Arena Norilsk shopping mall, which opened its doors in December 2013. In September 2015, the shopping mall welcomed visitors to the new X-Fit-Sever fitness center and the Tropicana water park and swimming pool. Norilsk has nine municipal extracurricular sports centers, where schoolchildren can choose from a variety of sports and activities: basketball, volleyball, acrobatics, gymnastics, trampoline, track and field, cross-country skiing, fencing, boxing, wrestling, swimming, taekwondo, judo, weightlifting, karate, futsal, figure skating, hockey, and water polo. Another popular local sport is curling. Norilsk and Dudinka host the international WCT Arctic Cup, which features teams from Hungary, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland, and Estonia. The championship is supported by the Russian Curling Federation and Nornickel. On December 17, 2020, Nornickel announced the opening of Aika, a sports center of over 10,000 square meters. The company has invested 3.6 billion rubles into its construction.


Social initiatives

In 2021, the
Russian government The Government of Russia exercises executive power in the Russian Federation. The members of the government are the prime minister, the deputy prime ministers, and the federal ministers. It has its legal basis in the Constitution of the Russia ...
, the Krasnoyarsk Territory, Norilsk and
Norilsk Nickel Norilsk Nickel (russian: ГМК «Норильский никель»), or Nornickel, is a Russian nickel and palladium mining and smelting company. Its largest operations are located in the Norilsk–Talnakh area near the Yenisei River in the no ...
approved a series of projects for the development of the city through to 2035 with a budget of 120.1 billion rubles (24 billion from the treasury, 14.8 billion from the budget of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, 81.3 billion from Norilsk Nickel's funds). Projects include renovation of the housing stock, repairs to infrastructure, and the relocation of residents to areas with more favorable living conditions. As of January 1, 2021, 8,064 families from Norilsk and Dudinka had purchased apartments and moved to the "mainland".


Notable people

People born in Norilsk: * Vakha Albakov (born 1985), footballer * Ahmed Anarbayev (born 1948), swimmer * Alexander Auzan (born 1954), economist * Andrey Bartenev (born 1965), artist *
Vladimir Bure Vladimir Valeryevich Bure (russian: Владимир Валерьевич Буре, born 4 December 1950) is a Russian former freestyle swimmer and a fitness coach for the New Jersey Devils of the NHL. Bure is the father of retired NHL players ...
(born 1950), swimmer * Mikhail Chachba (1930-1967), diver *
Oksana Cherkasova Oksana Cherkasova (Russian: Черкасова Оксана Леонтьевна) - Soviet and Russian director of animation films and animator. She received the State Prize of Russian Federation in 1996. She is Member of the Union of Cinematogr ...
(born 1951), animator * Oleksandr Glotov (born 1953), Ukrainian journalist * Leonid Ilyichov (born 1948), swimmer *
Vladislav Karapuzov Vladislav Aleksandrovich Karapuzov (russian: Владислав Александрович Карапузов; born 6 January 2000) is a Russian association football, football player. He plays as a right winger for FC Akhmat Grozny, Akhmat Grozny ...
(born 2000), footballer *
Mikhail Popkov Mikhail Viktorovich Popkov (russian: Михаи́л Ви́кторович Попко́в; born 7 March 1964) is a Russian serial killer, rapist, and necrophile who committed the sexual assault and murder of seventy-eight girls and women between ...
(born 1964), prolific serial killer *
Yuriy Prodan Yuri Vasylovych Prodan ( uk, Юрій Васильович Продан) is Ukrainian power engineer and politician. He has served as Minister of Fuel and Energy of Ukraine of 18 December 2007 to 11 March 2010, and Minister of Energy and Coal Ind ...
(born 1959), politician * Viktor Semchenkov (born 1942), swimmer * Alexander Shikov (1948-2013), materials scientist * Sergey Smagin (born 1958), chess grandmaster * Evgeny Solovyov (born 1992), ice hockey player *
Nadezhda Tolokonnikova Nadya Tolokonnikova ( rus, Надя Толоконникова, p=, full name Nadezhda Andreevna Tolokonnikova, rus, Надежда Андреевна Толоконникова, p=nɐˈdʲeʐdə təlɐˈkonʲːɪkəvə; born November 7, 1989) ...
, political activist and member of ''
Pussy Riot Pussy Riot is a Russian feminist protest and performance art group based in Moscow that became popular for its provocative punk rock music which later turned into a more accessible style. Founded in August 2011, it has had a membership of appr ...
'' *
Viktor Tomenko Viktor Petrovich Tomenko (Russian: Виктор Петрович Томенко; born 12 May 1971), is a Russian statesman who is currently Governor of Altai Krai, elected 17 September 2018. Career Viktor Tomenko was born in Norilsk on 12 Ma ...
(born 1971), statesman *
Dmitri Torbinski Dmitri Yevgenyevich Torbinski (russian: Дмитрий Евгеньевич Торбинский; born 28 April 1984) is a Russian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He was a central midfielder and winger known for hi ...
(born 1984), footballer * Andrey Tveryankin (born 1967), Azerbaijani futsai player *
Natalia Yurchenko , nickname= , country= , formercountry= Russia , birth_date= , birth_place=Norilsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union , hometown=Russia , death_date= , death_place= , height=155 cm (5'1") , discipline=Artistic gymnastics , level=Senior Elite Gymnast , n ...
(born 1965), gymnast * Ivan V. Zaitsev (born 1975), Russian-born Kazakhstani water polo player


Twin cities

Norilsk is twinned with two other cities: *
Minusinsk Minusinsk (russian: Минуси́нск; kjh, Минсуғ) is a historical types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. Population: 44,500 (1973). Geography Minusinsk marks the center of the Minusinsk Hollow ...
, Krasnoyarsk Territory *
Nesebar Nesebar (often transcribed as Nessebar and sometimes as Nesebur, bg, Несебър, pronounced ) is an ancient city and one of the major seaside resorts on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast, located in Burgas Province. It is the administrative cen ...
, Bulgaria


See also

*
Colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the ''metropole, metropolit ...
*
Human outpost Human outposts
*
Mill town A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories, usually cotton mills or factories producing textiles. Europe Italy * ''Crespi d'Adda'', UNESCO World Her ...
*
Tunguska Basin The Tunguska Basin is a sedimentary basin, in Siberia. Geography Much of the Siberian Traps Large Igneous Province is inside. The area is of about in Krasnoyarsk Territory and Sakha Republic, between the Yenisei and Lena rivers. It contains ...


References


Citations


General sources

* *
"Norilskaya golgofa"
"
Memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of a ...
", regional Branch "Siberia", publisher: "Klaretianum", Krasnoyarsk, 2002 *


External links


Official website of Norilsk

MMC Norilsk Nickel

"Would You Live in This Toxic, Closed-Off City?"
video profile of city by ''
The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'' (2017) {{Authority control 1935 establishments in the Soviet Union Cities and towns built in the Soviet Union Cities and towns in Krasnoyarsk Krai Closed cities Monotowns in Russia Populated places established in the 1920s Populated places of Arctic Russia Road-inaccessible communities of Krasnoyarsk Krai Socialist planned cities North Siberian Lowland