TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Electricity company PT PLN (Persero) stated that the major blackout in Sumatra on Friday, May 22, 2026, starting at 18:44 WIB (Western Indonesian Time), was caused by bad weather, which subsequently affected part of Sumatra's electrical system.
"Disruptions in the transmission lines had a widespread impact on part of Sumatra's transmission system, resulting in a frequency drop due to heavy generator loads and triggering a domino effect in several areas," said PLN's President Director, Darmawan Prasodjo, in an official statement on Saturday, May 23, 2026, as quoted by Antara.
According to Darmawan, as soon as the disruption occurred, PLN began inspecting and restoring the electrical system. He explained that the disrupted transmission network was successfully restored within about two hours.
Following the successful restoration of the transmission network, Darmawan said that PLN's main focus was to recommission generators that had previously been affected and realign them with the prepared transmission system.
He explained that the commissioning process for generators was carried out systematically and gradually, with a priority on system safety. Hydro and gas-based generators could immediately assist in supplying the system as a rapid response to hasten the initial recovery.
"Meanwhile, thermal generators such as coal-fired power plants require a longer time, between 15 and 20 hours from start-up, synchronization, and full operation," he said.
The recovery was carried out simultaneously from the transmission and substations to the generators in Sumatra's electrical system. To support this process, PLN deployed hundreds of personnel working 24 hours in various affected areas, including Jambi, West Sumatra, Riau, North Sumatra, and Aceh.
Read: PLN Restores West Sumatra Substation Following Blackout
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