PLN builds emergency towers to restore power supplies in Central Kalimantan

Public utility PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) is building temporary power towers as part of emergency measures in Jekanraya district, Palangkaraya, Central Kalimantan to restore power supplies which have been disrupted following the collapse of seven towers.

Seven towers in the province collapsed on Saturday amid stormy weathers, disrupting power supplies from the neighboring province of South Kalimantan to the province. Peak load in Central Kalimantan is 95 MW, including 40-45 MW supplied from South Kalimantan through the Banjarmasin-Palangkaraya grid, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources said in a statement on Tuesday.

The ministry said PLN has fielded resources from East Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan and West Java to build the seven emergency towers. As of Monday evening, a total of 108 PLN employees had been on the field to build the emergency towers. The work is expected to be completed in five days.

The ministry called on the public to reduce activities near the emergency towers, noting that the towers are lower than the toppled ones.

Head of Palangkaraya BMKG weather agency I Wayan Mustika Kasment said that when the incident happened on Saturday evening, the wind was speeding at 61.2 km per hour.

Editing by Johannes Simbolon