TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia’s state electricity company PLN said it has apologized after a major power outage affected large parts of Sumatra on Friday, May 22, 2026.
The disruption, triggered by severe weather, hit key substations and transmission systems across the island, leaving homes and businesses without electricity.
PLN President Director Darmawan Prasodjo said the outage affected southern, central, and northern Sumatra, causing widespread blackouts in residential and commercial areas.
“Once again, we are putting forth our best efforts, mobilizing all our resources, and remaining vigilant to ensure a swift recovery of the power system,” Darmawan said during a press conference on Saturday, May 23, 2026.
He said the affected provinces include Aceh, North Sumatra, West Sumatra, Riau, and Jambi. The disruption was recorded at 18:44 Western Indonesia Time (WIB) and immediately reported to the Directorate General of Electricity under the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.
According to Darmawan, the initial trigger was a failure in the 275 kV transmission line between Muara Bungo and Sungai Rumbai in Jambi, which led to disturbances across power plants in the system, causing partial load shedding and supply imbalances.
He explained that in some areas, system frequency and voltage increased, triggering automatic shutdowns at power plants. In other areas, reduced generation caused shortages, leading to drops in frequency and voltage that further strained the system and forced additional shutdowns.
“This situation cascaded into a disturbance in the power supply system from Jambi, Riau, North Sumatra all the way to Aceh,” he said.
Following the outage, PLN deployed technical teams to inspect substations and transmission infrastructure. Within two hours, the company said substations and transmission systems were restored.
Darmawan noted that the incident differed from a major Sumatra disruption at the end of last year, when physical damage such as collapsed transmission towers caused by landslides was recorded. “Today, we can confirm that our main substations and transmission systems have been restored,” he said.
Read: PLN Says Bad Weather Caused Sumatra Blackout
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