Laksamana fires 4 PLN directors

A'an Suryana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government announced on Monday a mass dismissal of top managers and organizational restructuring at state-owned electricity company PLN amid mounting public criticism that the company was woefully inefficient.

Nevertheless, the current PLN president Eddie Widiono Suwondho retained his post, but four of the company's five directors were replaced.

Finance director Parno Isworo, who had also survived previous management shakeups, managed to retain his post again this time.

The dismissal decision was signed by State Minister of State Enterprises Laksamana Sukardi on Thursday.

The four outgoing company directors are planning director Hardiv Harris S., operations director Bambang Hermiyanto Priyadi, marketing and distribution director Tunggono and personnel and organizational director Azwani Sjech Umar.

The government also restructured PLN's organization by omitting the planning division and introducing the generation and primary energy division.

Ali Herman Ibrahim was named as the director for the new division.

The three other new faces include Herman Darnel as transmission and distribution director (also a newly created post), Sunggu Anwar Aritonang as commercial and customer service director (new post), and Djuanda Nugraha Ibrahim as the personnel and organizational director.

Eddie said that the change in the structure of PLN's organization was aimed at improving efficiency, but he gave few details of how that would be achieved.

"Having created the generation and primary energy division, PLN can now focus more on how to improve efficiency in the provision of fuel for its power plants," Eddie told reporters after attending the inauguration ceremony of the new directors at the office of the state minister of state enterprises.

Fuel costs has been the major production cost for PLN in producing electricity power.

According to PLN's master plan, it is estimated that the company will spend some Rp 34 trillion (US$3.82 billion), out of total Rp 65 trillion budgeted for this year, in fuel costs alone.

Meanwhile, Roeswijaya, a deputy at the office of the state minister of state enterprises, denied rumors that the major shake up was a sudden decision, saying that it had been planned two years ago.