N. Korean premier inspects crude oil refinery amid UN's ban on jet fuel shipments

North Korea's Cabinet Premier Pak Pong-ju conducted a field inspection of a crude oil refinery after the U.N. Security Council's recent sanction banning jet fuel to be shipped to the communist country, the North's state news agency reported Sunday.

The premier encouraged workers, scientists and technicians during his field survey of the production situation and manufacturing facilities at Ponghwa Chemical Factory and the Rakwon Mechanical Factory, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

The premier "encouraged the workers there in their drive to improve the management of equipment and technical control," the KCNA said.

At his onsite visits to Ponghwa Chemical Factory, Pak convened meetings to consult with managers and officials for the solution of improving the manufacturing process, the report said.

Located at Pihyon County in North Pyongan Province, Ponghwa Chemical Factory is known to be a leading petroleum supply facility in the northwestern region of the country.

The factory was built with Chinese support in 1980 and reportedly uses imported crude to produce refined oil products for North Korea's government, military, transportation, agricultural and fishing sectors.

Sources said, however, that North Korea presently runs only one of its two primary oil refineries, giving the single operational refinery a critical role in the nation's economy and defense.

The new U.N. sanction prohibits all small arms and other conventional weapons from being sold to the North. It also bans jet and rocket fuel from being supplied to the country, grounds North Korean flights suspected of carrying contraband, and denies vessels carrying illicit items access to ports.

The sanctions, moreover, require mandatory inspection of all cargo going into and out of the North, and bar the country from exporting coal, iron and other mineral resources. Such resources are a key source of hard currency and account for nearly half of the country's total exports. (Yonhap)