The outages on Monday and Tuesday nights were traced to problems at major power stations in Fiaga, Fuluasou, and Tanugamanono, which provide large amounts of electricity to the country.

Faumui said the issue was a burnt underground cable connecting Fuluasou and Tanugamanono.

 “These are the cables that are important for transmitting electricity everywhere,” he said, showing pictures of the damaged cable at a press conference.

He explained that electricity flows from Fiaga to Fuluasou and then from Fuluasou to Tanugamanono. 

Residents on the East Coast receive electricity from Tanugamanono, while those on the West Coast receive it from Fuluasou. 

The damaged cable prevented electricity from reaching Tanugamanono, affecting the East Coast supply.

Faumui said the underground cable might have failed because it was over 10 years old. He also said water damage or overloading could be a cause.

EPC workers located the problem at Vaimoso and completed repairs by early Wednesday morning. Faumui said the repair work took two days, and the electricity network is now stable. 

“We will not be expecting any more disruptions,” he added.

Faumui said they will now conduct electrical tests to ensure the cables are safe and working properly, and also noted that they will monitor them regularly.