Kupol Gold Mine, Bilibinsky District, Chukotka, Siberia, Russia

Description
The Kupol Gold Mine is located north of the Arctic Circle in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug (historically mined by prisoners during the early Soviet era). The nearest town is 220 kilometres (140 mi) away. The mine employs 1,200 workers; those who reside in the far east of Russia work on a four-weeks-on, four-weeks-off schedule, while those who live farther away have a six-weeks-on, four-weeks-off rotation. Worker salaries are 25 percent above the regional average. The $40 million workers camp includes a full-size gym, sports hall, pool tables, music room, library, prayer room, televisions, and video library. An enclosed, 900-metre (3,000 ft) tunnel, dubbed the "Arctic Corridor", allows workers to travel between the camp and the mine without exposure to the cold during winter.
Sixty percent of the gold, which is mined for doré bars, is mined underground. Workers in the deepest parts of the mine operate machinery via remote control to reduce the chance of being trapped by rock falls.
Between January and April, the only land access to Kupol is via a 360-kilometre (220 mi) winter road from the port of Pevek. Kinross rebuilds this road each year between November and January, with construction requiring a temperature of −25 °C (−13 °F) or less. Equipment, supplies, and fuel which will be needed during the winter months must be ordered two years in advance and shipped to Pevek, which is open only during the summer for three months. In 2008, the winter road accommodated 1,944 truck trips for the delivery of 3,000 container units, 60,000 tonnes of supplies, and 25,000 tonnes of diesel fuel. At all other times of year, Kupol is accessible only via helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft.