Power outage affects telecommunication towers in Daru

The ongoing and unannounced power disruptions in Daru, the provincial headquarters of Western Province, are causing chaos for residents and businesses as they face difficulties accessing essential services.

The latest disruption over the weekend has caused Digicel and Vodafone networks to be unstable, leaving residents unable to access EFTPOS machines or withdraw cash from ATMs, sparking widespread frustration on the island.

According to Aashik Lodhi, Operations Manager for RAMS [who is the Digicel Contractor], said the Digicel tower in Daru has been running on generator power for the past three to four months due to ongoing power issues. and the generator is starting to fail.

Despite repeated notifications to PNG Power Limited [PPL] Daru, efforts to fix the issue have only provided temporary relief, with problems recurring within a day.

The Digicel Contractor has been vocal about the issue, pleading with PPL Daru to restore power to their tower, however, this has fallen on deaf ears.

Lodhi stressed that the tower has been operating on generator power for months, and is now on the brink of failure.

He said responses from PNG Power have been unsatisfactory, prompting a call for urgent action to resolve the issue.

"We are willing to work with PPL to find a solution and is offering support where needed," he said.

Lodhi warned that if the generator at the Digicel tower in Daru shuts down, communication on the island will be disrupted, impacting the Easipay system as well as other essential services.

"Additionally, PPL's revenue will be affected, as Digicel pays approximately k10 000 to K15,000 per month in PPL billing for the site," he said.

Meanwhile, NBC News approached PPL Daru, however, they refused to comment, redirecting all inquiries to their headquarters in Port Moresby.