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View all search resultsRepeated blackouts across Indonesia put PLN reliability under scrutiny
In Medan, North Sumatra, the blackouts have now triggered a looming clean water supply crisis after critical equipment operated by regional water company PDAM Tirtanadi was damaged during the outages.
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City in the dark: A vendor prepares drinks for customers on May 23, 2026, during a power outage in Nagari Kasang, Padang Pariaman, West Sumatra. Rolling blackouts continued to affect several areas in West Sumatra, with scheduled outages taking place in different regions. (Antara/Fitra Yogi)
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epeated power outages across multiple regions in recent days have disrupted essential services, interrupted critical examinations and been linked to fatal incidents, prompting renewed scrutiny of the reliability of state-owned electricity company PLN.
In Medan, North Sumatra, the blackouts have now triggered a looming clean water supply crisis after critical equipment operated by regional water utility PDAM Tirtanadi was damaged during the outages.
PDAM Tirtanadi President Director Ardian Surbakti said several critical machines at the utility's water treatment facilities were damaged by rolling blackouts that hit North Sumatra in recent days, disrupting clean water services across parts of Medan from Tuesday.
"The damaged equipment has severely affected our ability to produce and distribute clean water, resulting in service disruptions for thousands of customers in seven of Medan's 21 districts," Ardian said on Tuesday.
As an emergency response measure, Ardian said PDAM Tirtanadi had deployed clean water tanker trucks to each of the affected districts to help meet residents' immediate needs.
Residents in affected areas expressed frustration over the disruption, saying the water outage had compounded the hardship caused by ongoing power cuts.
Jefri Hidayat, a resident of Medan Denai district, said clean water had stopped flowing to his home since Tuesday morning, leaving his family struggling to meet daily needs.
