Sveagruva , or simply Svea, was a mining settlement in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, lying at the head of Van Mijenfjord.
It was the third largest settlement in the archipelago . Around 300 workers living in Longyearbyen commuted to Sveagruva for work on a daily or weekly basis. The mine was operated by Store Norske Spitsbergen Kulkompani. There is no road to Longyearbyen or any other settlements, so travel is done by air from Svea Airport and coal transport by ship from a port 5 kilometres southwest. Sveagruva closed in 2017 and currently has no permanent inhabitants.
The town was established in 1917 by Swedes. It was thereafter destroyed in 1944, but quickly re-established after World War II. The mining activity ceased in 1949, and was not re-established until 1970. Mining was suspended for a short period in 1987. In the 1990s, the town nearly vanished, as mines in Longyearbyen proved more productive and accessible. In 2005, a mine fire erupted, lasting uninterrupted for more than five weeks, and causing 700 million Norwegian kroner worth of damage.
Source: Wikipedia.org
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