TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Darmawan Prasodjo, President Director of the state power company PLN, said that there has been a notable surge in the number of electric vehicles utilized for travel during this Christmas and New Year holiday season compared to previous years.

Darmawan said that during the 2023 year-end holiday, approximately 2,800 electric vehicles were used for homecoming trips. This number is expected to rise to around 7,000 vehicles this year.

"Today, we observed that the transaction volume has surged fivefold compared to the Christmas 2023 and New Year 2024 period," Darmawan said in Batang, Central Java, on Wednesday, December 26, as quoted by Antara.

In response to this, Darmawan said that PLN has expanded the number of Public Electric Vehicle Charging Stations (SPKLU) by up to eightfold. "We are continuously monitoring the availability of SPKLU," he added.

Based on the monitoring results, he assured that the electricity system across Indonesia remains reliable, with a secure supply of primary energy sources such as coal, gas, and oil. All power plants are also functioning optimally, and maintenance has been planned and executed well in advance, ensuring they are in peak condition.

Similarly, he noted that the substations, transmission, and electricity distribution systems are operating smoothly.

During his working visit to the KM-379 rest area on the Batang-Semarang Toll Road, Darmawan mentioned that PLN has deployed 81,000 personnel and set up 4,900 posts to support the 2024 Christmas and 2025 New Year celebrations.

Darmawan underscored that PLN is fully committed to supporting the government’s efforts to ensure a comfortable holiday experience for the public. "PLN has taken proactive steps to ensure that the entire electrical system remains reliable well ahead of time," he stated.

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