Portugal and Spain Power Outage: Portugal and Spain experienced a severe power outage on Monday, which caused extensive inconvenience. Roads and airports were in disarray as millions of people lost access to phone and internet services, leaving many stuck on trains.
As both nations grappled with handling the disturbance, they proclaimed a state of emergency. The Iberian Peninsula and portions of France saw an interruption in the electrical supply after lunchtime, according to Portugal’s Redes Energeticas Nacionais (REN). When 15 gigawatts of power suddenly went out, there was a Spanish blackout.
There is no proof of a cyberattack, according to the Portuguese National Cyber Security Centre. It was described as “one of the most serious episodes recorded in Europe in recent times” by Teresa Ribera, executive vice president of the European Commission.
About 35,000 people were evacuated from more than 100 trains by Spanish rescue services. Eleven trains’ worth of passengers were still waiting to be evacuated around 11 p.m.
There was a significant impact on essential services. While petrol stations stopped operating, hospitals had to rely on generators. While some apps operated sporadically, mobile networks mostly failed.
With the exception of Spain’s islands and African regions, the outage affected around 60 million people throughout the peninsula.
Following emergency cabinet talks, Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro predicted that electricity would be restored by the end of the day.
“We have learnt of a general blackout in the electricity grid, which originated outside our territory, most probably in Spain,” Prime Minister Luis Montenegro said in a television address.
Aena’s 56 airports, including key hubs in Madrid and Barcelona, experienced aircraft delays as a result of Spanish airports running on emergency power systems. Airport terminals in Portugal’s capital shut down, forcing travellers to wait outside.
“We haven’t seen any plane arriving or departing in the 50 minutes we’ve been waiting here,” Dutch visitor Marc Brandsma told AP.
Emergency measures were declared in several regions, including Andalusia, Extremadura, Murcia, La Rioja, and Madrid, by Spain’s Interior Minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska.
Portugal’s Prime Minister, Luis Montenegro, declared an energy emergency, stating, “We have learnt of a general blackout in the electricity grid, which originated outside our territory, most probably in Spain.”
Spain regains 50% of power
Spain’s prime minister revealed that electricity imported from France and Morocco was being used to bring power back to Spain. To deal with the problem, the country boosted the production of combined cycle thermal power and hydroelectric power.
About 50% of Spain’s power supply had been restored by 11 p.m., and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez promised that the entire system would be back up by the end of Tuesday.