PLN Strengthens Electricity Infrastructure to Support Data Centre Growth in Indonesia
PT PLN (Persero) continues to strengthen its electricity infrastructure to support the growth of the data centre sector in Indonesia. Alongside the rapid development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital transformation, the data centre sector has become one of the drivers of national economic growth.
The President Director of PLN, Darmawan Prasodjo, stated that the growth of data centres requires electrical support with increasingly specific characteristics, particularly regarding capacity, reliability, power quality, and the use of clean energy. These conditions are prompting PLN to prepare infrastructure and services that align with the needs and development plans of its customers.
“The increasing demand for electricity within the data centre ecosystem demonstrates the growing importance of energy infrastructure for the growth of the digital economy. PLN wants the development of electricity infrastructure to proceed in tandem with the development of the digital sector, with planning conducted early so that energy needs can be anticipated and investment can develop sustainably,” said Darmawan.
During a discussion session at the Electricity Connect 2026 event in ICE BSD City, Tangerang, on Wednesday (23/9), the Executive Vice President of Sales and Enterprise Customer Service at PLN, Dini Sulistyawati, reported that PLN currently serves 159 data centre customers with a total connected capacity of 2,038 megavolt amperes (MVA). Approximately 99 per cent of this capacity is still concentrated within the Java-Madura-Bali electricity system, with West Java serving as one of the largest data centre clusters.
However, data centre development is beginning to expand beyond that region, including into Sumatra, Kalimantan, and Sulawesi. As this expansion occurs, the demand for electricity supply from the technology sector is expected to continue increasing, necessitating electricity infrastructure planning that aligns with the specific needs of each region. Currently, these data centre customers record energy consumption of 2,378 gigawatt hours (GWh).
“We believe this is only the beginning. Artificial intelligence, cloud computing, digital services, and the growth of Indonesia’s digital economy will continue to create new electricity needs on a very significant scale,” said Dini.
Furthermore, she added that PLN’s greatest challenge is maintaining a balance between accelerating supply capacity and ensuring reliability, affordability, and long-term system stability. The development of power plants and networks needs to be planned in an integrated manner and initiated early to anticipate the growing needs of data centres. To this end, PLN encourages an ‘early alignment’ approach or coordination from the initial stages of development.
“Early commitment and closer coordination from both parties, supported by clearer demand projections, realistic energisation schedules, appropriate capacity development speed, and stronger cooperation between PLN, customers, and the government. Therefore, the management of data centre commitments must be a joint planning process,” she concluded.