Sumatra Power Restoration: PLN Says 8,351,670 Customers Have Their Power Restored
Electricity restoration in Sumatra is ongoing following a fault in the 275 kV Muara Bungo–Sungai Rumbai transmission line in Jambi. PT PLN (Persero) Chief Executive Darmawan Prasodjo said that by Saturday, 23 May 2026, at 10:00 WIB, 8,351,670 customers had regained their electricity supply.
In addition, more than 3,192 MW of power has been delivered from the total 5,334 MW that were previously affected. A total of 157 of 176 affected substations have also returned to operation.
“At present, all PLN staff and technical teams are working 24 hours a day on the ground. The recovery process continues and we are all-out to ensure electricity supply to the public can be restored gradually and safely,” Darmawan said on Saturday (23 May 2026).
Darmawan explained that the disruption occurred on Friday, 22 May, around 18:44 WIB. Early indications suggested severe weather triggered the disturbance, impacting parts of Sumatra’s power system.
“The disruption on the transmission corridor spread to parts of Sumatra’s transmission system, causing a frequency drop due to heavy loading of the generator fleet and triggering a domino effect of outages in several regions,” he noted.
He said the affected transmission network was restored within around two hours. After that, the company focused on re-starting the affected generation plants and synchronising them with the transmission system.
“The start-up of plants was conducted systematically and gradually, with safety of the system as the priority. Hydroelectric and gas-fired plants can immediately help to supply the system as a fast response to accelerate the early recovery. Meanwhile, thermal plants such as PLTU require longer time, between 15 and 20 hours from start-up to synchronisation and full operation,” he said.
Recovery was undertaken from the transmission side, through substations to generation plants. Hundreds of PLN personnel were deployed to work 24 hours in the affected areas from Jambi, West Sumatra, Riau, North Sumatra to Aceh.
Darmawan said the agency would continue coordinating with the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), local governments and relevant authorities to accelerate the restoration of the electricity system.
“We apologise most sincerely for the inconvenience caused. We remain on alert so that the electricity system can be restored as quickly as possible and the public can resume enjoying electricity as soon as possible,” concluded Darmawan. (H-3)