Coal mining in Pyramiden was established by Swedish interests in 1910 and sold to the Soviet Union in 1927. At its peak, the settlement had over 1,000 residents, and just before its closure, around 600 Russians and Ukrainians spent the winter there. Trust Arktikugol shut down coal mining operations in April 1998 after 53 years of continuous activity. Mining ceased, and the settlement was abandoned. The site bears signs of the hurried departure. After the winter of 1998/99, Pyramiden was uninhabited for a period until limited-scale tourism was established around 2013.