Ulma Haryanto

The Thousand Islands, a popular holiday destination for Jakartans, have been hit by a power outage. (Photo: Yudhi Sukma Wijaya, JG)

Problem With Underwater Cable Cuts Power to Thousand Islands

About 2,000 households in the South Thousand Islands subdistrict of Jakarta have spent more than a week without state power because of a technical problem.

Maurits Napitupulu, the head of Jakarta’s energy and mining agency, told the Jakarta Globe that diving teams were searching for the cause of the problem along a 3,140-meter underwater power cable that connects the district.

“The team is still searching for the exact location of the problem. It could take another seven to 10 days,” Maurits explained.

Some 9,000 people living across the district have had to rely on diesel-powered generators.

Power only arrived in the subdistrict in early 2008, as a collaborative effort between state utility firm PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara and the Jakarta city administration.

In contrast, the North Thousand Islands subdistrict, home to about 15,000 residents, has always relied on diesel-powered generators, according to Roderick, a resort-owner living there.

Roderick said the local government had never provided the district with alternative power sources.

He said he and other resort owners usually relied on generators, despite the unstable fuel costs.

Some resort owners had researched alternative energy sources on their own initiative, he said, and solar power had proved to be the best alternative so far.

Roderick added that he and other resort owners were also looking into using vegetable oil to power their generators.

Fabby Tumiwa, an electricity analyst from the Institute for Essential Service Reform, said it was relatively expensive to provide power to Thousand Islands, particularly the North Thousand Islands subdistrict.

“PLN is most likely calculating the economic benefits of relaying electricity to those parts,” he said.

“With the new bylaw on electricity, local administrations have the right to intervene regarding the provision of electricity. They can look at other solutions, especially those that are more sustainable such as hybrid solar panels and small-scale wind turbines.”

The Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) and the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) are known to have developed these kinds of energy solutions.

The Thousand Islands, or Kepulauan Seribu, consists of about 105 islands stretching north of Jakarta into the Java Sea.

About 30,000 people live on the islands, most of them on 11 islands.

Another 10 islands are used primarily as resorts.