PLN promises to restore power in several Aceh regencies soon
The Jakarta Post, Lhokseumawe, Aceh
State electricity company PT PLN expects to end the week-long power outage in several regencies in the war-torn province of Aceh early this week, saying it was close to completing repairs on transmission towers that collapsed in alleged acts of sabotage by Free Aceh Movement (GAM) rebels.
Lhokseumawe PLN chief Sulaiman Daud said over the weekend that about 50 percent of the repair work had been done, which was sufficient to restore some power.
"We will run some tests and if they are successful, the electricity will be back on after that," he said.
He earlier predicted that repairs would take about one month.
A power blackout has hit much of northern Aceh, covering the regencies of North Aceh, Bireuen, Central Aceh and parts of Pidie. According to Sulaiman, the repairs done so far could enable power to be supplied to the regencies of North Aceh, Bireuen and Pidie.
The blackout has added to the daily hardships of the local people, who have had to cope with the ongoing war against GAM. The military command in the North Aceh town of Lhokseumawe has installed a large PLN generator for continued power supply while the rest of the town remains in complete darkness.
PLN said the blackout was caused by the collapse of four transmission towers that the Indonesian Military (TNI) blamed on GAM.
The tower collapse occurred during the second week of one of Indonesia's largest military operations to crush Acehnese separatists. Sulaiman said that PLN's infrastructure was prone to sabotage, especially to transmission towers spread across the vast province.
The first alleged act of sabotage against PLN transmission towers during the war was on May 21, three days after the military operation began. A tower fell toward a palm tree, which propped it up, allowing electricity to continue passing through the line. Three more towers collapsed on June 5, which caused the present widespread blackout. Sulaiman said a fifth tower collapsed on June 10.
Sulaiman said there was no guarantee that the saboteurs would not strike again once PLN repaired the towers.
He refused to disclose the exact date of the transmission tests due to concerns that it might prompt saboteurs to try again.
Asked whether he had asked for military protection for the towers, he said the TNI would have to provide soldiers to protect more than 1,000 transmission towers in the affected regencies. The military is already protecting strategic facilities like electricity transmission lines and gas assets, but lacks soldiers to protect every tower.