Bahlil Denies Coal Crisis Caused Java Blackouts, Says PLN Supply Is Secure

The Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), Bahlil Lahadalia, has denied reports suggesting that rolling blackouts in several areas of Java are caused by a shortage of coal supply for steam-powered power plants (PLTU).

According to Bahlil, the government has anticipated the coal requirements of PT PLN (Persero) by assigning tasks to national coal mining companies. Consequently, he believes there are no issues regarding the availability of coal supply for power generation needs.

Bahlil emphasised that PLN’s annual coal requirement reaches approximately 154 million tonnes. To guarantee this supply, the Directorate General of Mineral and Coal (Minerba) of the Ministry of ESDM has issued assignments to several national coal companies with volumes that actually exceed PLN’s needs.

“PLN’s coal requirement is 154 million tonnes. From that 154 million tonnes, the Director General of Minerba has assigned national coal companies a volume of between 180 and 190 million tonnes,” Bahlil stated in a written statement quoted from the official Ministry of ESDM website.

Bahlil noted that from the total assignment given to national mining companies, 134 million tonnes have already been contracted. Under these conditions, he noted that approximately 18 million tonnes still remain to be fulfilled. However, he argued that this figure does not indicate a supply shortage that could cause disruptions to the national electricity system.

He asserted that the government, through the Ministry of ESDM, has fulfilled its duty in ensuring coal availability for PLN. Therefore, if there are obstacles in distribution or if coal supplies have not yet arrived at power plants, the issue is more related to technical and logistical aspects.

“This means there is only about 18 million tonnes left. Where is the shortage? Technically, getting it to the power plant is not the task of the Director General of Minerba. That falls under the technical logistics management of PLN,” Bahlil emphasised.

This statement serves as a response to various speculations circulating regarding the causes of the rolling blackouts that recently occurred in several regions.