Sumatra Power Outage: Governor Bobby Nasution Details Public Impact

North Sumatra Governor Bobby Nasution confirmed a temporary power outage across Sumatra lasting several hours, with full restoration now achieved. ‘PLN in North Sumatra informed the public that restoration would take three to six hours, affecting only parts of the region. By yesterday evening and this morning, full power was restored,’ he told reporters at the Parliament Complex in Senayan on Monday, 25 May 2026.

During the restoration, the military, police, and regional authorities deployed generators to key sites. ‘Generators were placed at critical points where power loss disrupted mobile signals, though not all residents were covered. Full restoration was confirmed today,’ he added.

He noted the outage impacted various sectors, including fisheries. ‘The consequences are extensive. We will assess the damage and determine how to address it, such as cold storage facilities in the fisheries industry,’ he said.

‘We will evaluate the extent of the damage—whether the provincial government can handle it or if coordination with higher authorities is needed,’ he added.

The cause of the widespread blackout across Sumatra has been clarified. Bareskrim Polri confirmed the outage, which had sparked speculation, was not due to sabotage. Police stated the disruption was caused by extreme weather affecting transmission lines, leading to sudden cable breaks.

Deputy Chief of Bareskrim Police, Inspector General Nunung Syaifuddin said the confirmation came after a joint investigation with Puslabfor and PLN regarding the incident on Friday, 22 May 2025. ‘To date, there is no evidence of sabotage or intentional acts in the blackout. The preliminary assessment points to technical issues and extreme weather causing disruptions to the transmission system,’ he said on Monday, 25 May 2026.