PLN: Rising Electricity Demand Must Be Matched by a More Reliable System

Jakarta (ANTARA) - State electricity company PT PLN (Persero) said the surge in electricity demand accompanying economic growth must be matched by improvements in system reliability and maintenance of power infrastructure to ensure an uninterrupted supply to the public.

PLN Director of Project Management and New and Renewable Energy Suroso Isnandar said positive economic growth had driven a significant increase in electricity demand. He described this as a positive signal that required the electricity infrastructure to be ready.

“Our economy is growing well, causing demand to surge considerably. This is actually a good sign, but it must be matched by more reliable maintenance of the infrastructure we have,” Suroso said at the Presidential Palace complex in Jakarta on Wednesday.

He cited an electricity disruption in Batam, Riau Islands, which caused a blackout and reduced services to the public. He said the disruption was linked to a problem with one of the transformers.

Suroso acknowledged that several areas still needed improvement, including the maintenance system for electricity infrastructure in Batam.

“We recognise that a lot needs to be improved, including in Batam,” he said.

PLN will review its existing maintenance system to ensure it can keep pace with rising electricity demand, including in Batam, where energy needs are growing.

Suroso said investigations into the exact cause of the disruption were still under way. PLN will also identify areas for improvement to strengthen the reliability of electricity supplies.

He added that electricity supplies in Batam had been fully restored by Wednesday (14 October), while restoration in Bintan was continuing gradually.

Asked whether affected customers would receive compensation, Suroso said PLN would conduct an assessment once the restoration process was complete.

Any compensation would be subject to the applicable regulations, including the required minimum duration of an outage.

“We will review it afterwards. At this moment, we have not conducted a review because we are still focused on the recovery work from yesterday and today,” he added.