PLN Batam Restores Power Supply After Monday Disruption

Batam (ANTARA) — PT PLN Batam has restored electricity supply to affected customers in Batam, Riau Islands, following a power system disruption that caused widespread outages at 6.37 am on Monday (12 October).

PLN Batam Corporate Secretary Rudi Antono said the restoration was the result of intensive work by technical and operations teams, which had been normalising the electricity system in stages.

“Based on initial indications, the disruption is suspected to have been triggered by a wild animal entering the Sungai Harapan Substation area, causing a fault in the electrical installation and affecting power supplies in several areas,” he said in an official statement received in Batam on Tuesday.

He said the technical team and relevant authorities were still investigating the exact cause of the disruption.

The restoration process had made significant progress since Monday evening. All affected substations and transmission networks had been returned to normal, followed by the recovery of distribution networks, restoring electricity to all affected customers in Batam.

“Restoration was carried out through measured technical stages, from inspecting and normalising power plants and synchronising units to restoring transmission and distribution networks. Throughout the process, safety, system stability and reliability remained the priorities,” he said.

By 4 am on Tuesday, electricity had been restored to 98 per cent of customers, while 99 per cent of the load affected by the outage was back online. Substations and transmission facilities in Batam were fully operational again.

Although supply has returned to normal, PLN Batam is keeping technical and operations personnel on standby to monitor the system and ensure reliable electricity supplies to the public.

PLN Batam also said it was committed to upholding customers’ rights to service quality. “If the disruption exceeds the agreed Service Quality Level (TMP) or Service Level Agreement (SLA), PLN Batam will provide compensation in accordance with applicable regulations,” Rudi said.

Regular customers will receive compensation equivalent to 10 per cent of their monthly fixed charge, in line with Riau Islands Governor Regulation No. 22 of 2017. Customers on reliability services will receive compensation of 15 to 25 per cent of their electricity usage charge (RPTL), depending on the type of service agreed.

Compensation will be applied automatically to the next electricity bill, with no claim required from customers.

PLN Batam apologised for the inconvenience and thanked the public for their patience, understanding and support during the restoration process.