At least 39,984 households in Biak Numfor district, Papua province, have been electrified so far, according to data received from the district government by ANTARA here on Monday.
The number of electrified houses has increased from 30,219 in 2020, the data showed.
Head of the Baik Numfor district, Herry Ario Naap, said that the number of electrified houses will keep increasing, including in remote areas, because electricity has become a basic need for residents.
Along with state-owned electricity company PT PLN, the district government will continue to meet the households’ demand for electricity, he added.
A local resident named Mnumumes said that electricity has become one of his family’s top priorities because his children need electric lights for studying at night.
He said it would also allow his family members to enjoy television programs. The PT PLN-Biak Office will hopefully maintain electricity services for all households across the district’s administrative area, he added.
ANTARA reported earlier that the Indonesian government has committed to increasing electricity access for people living in the outermost, remote, and underdeveloped (3T) regions across the country.
In this regard, Papua is one of the provinces that need special attention besides East Nusa Tenggara, and Maluku.
According to Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Arifin Tasrif, his ministry has initiated a program to provide new electricity installations.
“Some 80 thousand connections have been allocated in the state budget for the 2022 term,” he informed in a statement last year.
The program covers households that cannot afford to pay for new installations in 3T areas that have already been supported by electricity, he said.
According to the data from the ministry, the national average electrification ratio reached 99.37 percent in July 2021.
As rural electricity supply has been dependent on diesel power plants so far, the government is encouraging them to be replaced with renewable energy sources, in accordance with the villages’ potential, he said.
In addition, the government is pushing the rooftop solar power plant program to increase consumers’ role in clean energy utilization, Tasrif added.
Source: Antara News