T

he Bali office of state-owned electricity company PT PLN plans to cut the power for five-hour stretches across the island, due to a deficit caused by maintenance of the Gilimanuk power plant.

PLN Bali general manager Arifuddin Nurdin said the island's power supply was only 582 megawatts (MW), of which 130 MW came from the Gilimanuk plant.

The blackouts will starting in the second week of October and run until early December, and will take effect in designated areas during peak hours between 6 p.m. and 11 p.m.

"During peak hours, Bali needs at least 493 MW," Nurdin said.

"We expect to lose 41 MW while maintenance works continue at the Gilimanuk plant."

He pointed out the island's recent peak demands were 460 to 470 MW.

"So the power deficit will only be between 11 and 20 MW," he said.

He added the deficit would cost PLN an estimated Rp 5 billion (US$500,000).

The company has called on its 740,000 customers to reduce electricity use by at least 100 watts in every household during peak hours.

Nurdin said the Gilimanuk maintenance work was urgently needed to prevent bigger supply problems in future.

The plant is supposed to have routine maintenance every 6,000 hours, but has now gone more than 8,000 hours without it.

"We planned to do it last April, but we couldn't because of the elections," Nurdin said.

"It's really high time for the maintenance works, otherwise we could face possible disruptions."

The Bali business community expressed concern over the impact of the blackouts.

"We understand PLN's reasons, but it must have alternatives to lessen the impact on customers," said Panudhiana Khun, from the Association of Indonesian Businessmen.

The blackouts will likely take their toll on small and medium businesses that cannot afford generators, as opposed to big businesses and hotels.

"The maintenance is routine, so PLN should have a policy in place for the downtime, rather than force these five-hour blackouts for the next 60 days," Khun said.

Bali Hotel Association executive director Djinaldi Gosana said the association's members all had their own generators.

"The blackouts will raise our operational costs because of the fuel needed for the generators," he said.

Ngurah Rai International Airport PR manager M. Dimyati said airport would not be affected.

"We have adequate energy reserves," she said.

The Bali administration plans to rent a 100-MW generator.