5,487 Households In West Kalimantan Just Receiving Electric Connection

Illustration of an electrical meter inspection by PLN officers. (Antara)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources provides new electrical connections for 5,487 households in West Kalimantan (West Kalimantan). The new electricity installation assistance program (BPBL) comes from the 2022 State Budget.

The program, supported by Commission VII of the DPR, targets people who are registered in the Integrated Social Welfare Data (DTKS), live in the outermost, leading, and disadvantaged areas (3T), and are feasible based on the validation of village heads or level officials.

"In addition to the BPBL program, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources has also accelerated the provision of electricity in areas where there is no electricity network," said Acting Director General of Electricity at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Dadan Kusdiana, during the inauguration of the 2022 BPBL Program in Limbung Raya Village, Kubu Raya Regency, West Kalimantan, quoted from Antara, Saturday, September 24.

On the same occasion, Deputy Chairman of Commission VII DPR RI Maman Abdurrahman said that in Kubu Raya Regency as many as 1,134 households will benefit from the 2022 BPBL program.

"Thanks to the support and enthusiasm of the government, PT PLN (Persero), and all village heads as well as teams in the field who are already working, can encourage progress in West Kalimantan," he said.

Until the second semester of 2022, the electrification ratio or comparison of electrified households with a total household of 99.56 percent. Dadan said there are still 347,141 households that have not yet been electrified and most of them are spread over the 3T area.

In 2022, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources targets 80,000 households in 22 provinces in Indonesia to receive BPBL programs from the APBN.

The recipient community of the BPBL program will receive housing electricity installation assistance with three lights and one contact box, inspection and testing of operating-worthy certificate installations (SLO), connection to PLN, and the first electric token.

Director of Retail and Commerce of PT PLN (Persero) Edi Srimulyanti said PLN received a government assignment through the Directorate General of Electricity of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources to implement the BPBL program for Fiscal Year 2022.

In executing the program, he said PLN had coordinated with various parties and prepared information technology infrastructure as a supporter.

"To carry out this assignment, we have prepared the information system needed to support this program," he said.

Meanwhile, the Regent of Kubu Raya Muda Mahendrawan expressed his gratitude for the support of Commission VII DPR, so that the aspirations of people who have not received electricity can be conveyed to the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.

He also emphasized that his party is ready to prepare and oversee the data needed to accelerate the connection between electricity to the people in their area.

Budianto, a resident of Limbung Raya, who is one of BPBL's beneficiaries, expressed his gratitude because he received new electricity installs.

Previously, the man who worked as a builder distributed electricity from a surau in front of his house.

"Alhamdulillah, I thank the government and PLN very much. After a long time, finally with this assistance, my house has light," he said.

Another BPBL beneficiary, Syaiful, who works as a musician, also thanked the government. Previously, he distributed electricity from his neighbors.