A major power outage in the Iberian Peninsula was caused by a sudden and significant loss of power, which led to the interruption of the interconnection between Spain and France. This was reported by the Spanish network operator Red Eléctrica de España (REE), quoted by Reuters, reports BTA.
According to data from the Energy Ministry, at 10:33 am yesterday, the network lost 15 gigawatts of electricity in just five seconds. The cause of the sudden loss remains unclear.
Eduardo Prieto, head of system operations at REE, told the media that European power grids were not designed to withstand such a large-scale loss. The disconnection between the French and Spanish power grids has therefore led to a blackout across Spain.
“As a result of the blackout and the serious imbalance in energy production, our system could not withstand it and collapsed”, Prieto told a press conference.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said in an address to the nation that the causes of the accident were still being investigated, with no possible hypothesis being ruled out.
The blackout caused serious disruption to public and economic life in both Spain and Portugal. However, power supplies are gradually being restored in both countries.