PLN records 3,212 villages electrified in five years

Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan (ANTARA) - PLN Main Distribution Unit of South and Central Kalimantan (UID Kalselteng) recorded that 3,212 villages from a total of 3,587 villages in South and Central Kalimantan have been electrified with a village electrification ratio (RDB) of 90.35 percent.

This is a significant achievement during five years under the leadership of Erick Thohir as Minister of State-owned Enterprises (BUMN) expanding electricity access to remote areas and improving service quality.

General Manager of PLN South and Central Kalimantan Ahmad Syauki when confirmed in Banjarbaru, Monday (September 23, 2024), acknowledged that the geographical condition of Kalimantan Island with its extensive forests and rivers provides its own challanges to electricity network development process.

“The beautiful geography of Kalimantan with its forests provides not easy challanges. Constraints of road infrastructure and area permits are also important issues in building electricity,” said Syauki.

In 2024, PLN UID Kalselteng had targeted the construction of electricity network to spread across 116 villages and it has been realized in 82 villages.

The success of this achievement, Syauki said, cannot be separated from synergy and colaboration with various parties.

“We really grateful to all parties, including provincial government, regional governments, legislative, prosecutor's office, TNI, Polri, and community who have contributed to making Kalimantan bright to the remote,” he said.

Besides, said the General Manager, the increase in the number of customers has now reached 2.36 million, reflecting the public trust in PLN service increasing highly.

“Almost all of our activities use electricity and PLN is the main choice for reliable electricity provider, so it is linear with the increasing number of customers, from households to industry and business,” he said.

As the number of customers increased, electricity sales also recorded the highest in history with a total of 3,909,74 GWh until August 2024. This reflects a significant growth of economy in South and Central Kalimantan, which is supported by the increasing need of electrical energy.

“This achievement has fueled our enthusiasm to continue to provide the best service to the public. PLN is committed to ensure that every corner of South and Central Kalimantan can enjoy the reliable electricity,” Syauki pointed out.

He also said that as one of buffer zone for the national capital city of Nusantara (IKN), South and Central Kalimantan has also become pioneer in using electric vehicle.

PLN UID Kalselteng has provided 25 public EV charging stations (SPKLU) which operate 24 hours a day, and will continue tp increase the number to 47 units by the end of 2024.

“The presence of SPKLU make it easier for EV users in Kalimantan. We also will continue to add number of SPKLU in all PLN offices in South and Central Kalimantan and other stategis places,” he said.

With these various achievement, PLN South and Central Kalimantan optimistic to continue to contribute to building a brighter and more prosperous Kalimantan, in line with the government's big vision to realize a more advanced Indonesia.