The President Director of PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (Persero), or\nPLN, Darmawan Prasodjo, has expressed his apologies after electricity\noutages hit the majority of the Sumatra region on Friday, 22 May 2026.\nThe power supply to residential homes and various facilities was\ninterrupted due to bad weather, which caused disruptions to substations\nand the transmission system, particularly in southern, central, and\nnorthern Sumatra.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe once again are putting forth our best efforts, deploying all the\nresources we have, and remain on alert so that the electricity system\ncan recover immediately,\u201d Darmawan stated during a press conference on\nSaturday, 23 May 2026.<\/p>\n
According to Darmawan, the affected provinces included Aceh, North\nSumatra, West Sumatra, Riau, and Jambi. The disruption was recorded at\n18:44 WIB and was immediately reported to the Directorate General of\nElectricity of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, acting as\nthe regulator.<\/p>\n
Initial indications of the disruption were found on the 275 kV\n(kilovolt) transmission line between Muara Bungo and Sungai Rumbai in\nJambi. The disturbance caused a shock to existing power plants, leading\nto some areas losing load and resulting in an oversupply.<\/p>\n
Darmawan explained that the frequency of the electricity system and\nthe voltage in two areas increased, causing power plants to shut down\nautomatically. However, some areas experienced a deficit because the\navailable power generation decreased, causing frequency and voltage to\ndrop, which subsequently placed a burden on the remaining plants and led\nto further shutdowns.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis condition created a domino effect, resulting in electricity\nsystem disruptions spanning from Jambi, Riau, and North Sumatra up to\nAceh,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Following the blackout, PLN deployed personnel to inspect damage to\nsubstations and the transmission system. Within two hours, the\nsubstations and transmission lines were successfully restored.<\/p>\n
Darmawan noted that this situation differed from the disasters in\nSumatra at the end of last year, which involved physical damage such as\ntransmission towers collapsing due to landslides. \u201cToday, we are\nannouncing that our substations and transmission systems have\nrecovered,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/pln-chief-apologises-for-power-outages-across-sumatra-1780886242", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }