Reva Sasistiya

Workers installing part of a transformer to replace one damaged in a fire at PLN’s Cawang power station in September. (Photo: Saptono, Antara)

Damaged Power Station Nearly Back to Full Capacity, PLN Says

State electricity utility PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara on Sunday said its Cawang power station would be operating at full capacity this week, two months after a fire at the station disrupted power supplies and triggered weeks of rolling blackouts in Greater Jakarta.

Widodo Budi Nugroho, PLN’s distribution manager for Jakarta and Tangerang, told the Jakarta Globe that PLN had completed installation of a new transformer at the plant last week.

He said it would require a week of testing before it would be capable of supplying power to Greater Jakarta. “We are expecting that by the middle of [this] week, the new transformer will have been integrated into the system completely,” he said.

The new transformer had been delivered on Oct. 13, he said.

PLN president director Fahmi Mochtar said, “We are optimistic that the process would be completed very soon.”

PLN said the installation of the new transformer would help the company in its quest to provide enough electricity to meet the demands of Greater Jakarta.

State Enterprises Minister Mustafa Abubakar this month had ordered an end to the blackouts by Tuesday.

On Nov. 21, PLN announced that the blackouts had effectively ended because certain large industrial customers had reduced their consumption enough to maintain an adequate supply of power.

It had said early this month that it needed $504 million and six transformers to fix the chronic power shortages in Jakarta.

Meanwhile, PLN continues to limit power consumption at the homes of affluent residents by installing devices that cut the power supply if the maximum limit is exceeded at any given time.

The devices have been installed at 307 upscale homes in Jakarta and Tangerang, with a total expected daily energy savings of 3 to 4 megawatts. Greater Jakarta currently faces a daily power deficit of about 170 MW.

Fahmi said PLN was considering expanding the program.