Not Just a Light Out, YLKI Says Sumatra Blackout Causes Huge Losses

The power supply was cut off in the West Medan District, Medan City, North Sumatra, Friday (22/5/2026). (ANTARA/M. Sahbainy Nasution.)

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Consumer Institute Foundation (YLKI) urges PT PLN (Persero) to conduct a thorough evaluation after a mass power outage or blackout in several areas of Sumatra.

Chairman of the YLKI Daily Board, Niti Emiliana, stated that his party was concerned about the power interruption which had a wide impact on the community and economic activities in various regions. "YLKI is concerned and regrets this incident. Of course there is a loss from both parties," said Niti in his statement, Monday, May 25.

Blackout is known to have hit a number of areas in Sumatra, including Aceh, North Sumatra, West Sumatra, Riau, and Jambi. According to YLKI, the disruption not only harms PLN in terms of operations and reputation, but also causes real economic losses for the public as consumers.

"PLN suffered operational and reputational losses. Meanwhile, consumers suffered real economic losses due to daily activities and business that were hampered," he explained.

YLKI assessed that PLN indeed has a responsibility to accelerate the restoration of the electricity system. However, the recovery step is considered insufficient without a thorough evaluation of the electricity distribution and transmission system.

"We demand a thorough evaluation and the implementation of a more reliable risk mitigation mechanism, especially through the development and optimization of a capable looping system to ensure the reliability of electricity distribution," said Niti.

He emphasized that this blackout event must be an alarm for PLN to strengthen the national electricity reliability system, especially in areas with wide distribution coverage such as Sumatra.

According to YLKI, the potential compensation to consumers due to service disruptions can also become a large financial burden for companies if similar incidents continue to occur.

"In the future, PLN is obliged to place investment on system reliability as a top priority in order to avoid losses for the community and the company itself," said Niti.