Significant Power Outage in Europe Linked to Solar Plant Failures

A major power outage that disrupted daily life across Europe has been traced to two likely breakdowns of solar plants in southwestern Spain, according to multiple reports.

By 7 a.m. local time on Tuesday, Spain’s electricity operator, Red Eléctrica, confirmed that over 99% of energy demand had been restored. Meanwhile, Portugal’s grid operator, REN, announced that all 89 power substations were back online, allowing power to flow to the 6.4 million customers affected by the blackout.

Red Eléctrica identified two incidents of power generation loss in southwestern Spain, which likely involved solar plants. These breakdowns induced instability in the Spanish power grid, ultimately contributing to a significant disruption in connections to France.

The economic toll of the blackout, which affected both Spain and Portugal across the Iberian Peninsula, could potentially reach between 2.5 billion and over 5 billion dollars, according to investment bank RBC.

Impact of the Outage Across Countries

During a televised address on Monday night, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez acknowledged the historic nature of the event, stating that the country had never experienced such a comprehensive collapse of its power system.

Emergency services reported that approximately 35,000 passengers were rescued from various locations such as railways and underground tunnels, where they found themselves stranded during the power outage.

Footage broadcast by Spanish television captured the chaos, showcasing commuters evacuating metro stations in Madrid and deserted platforms with halted trains in Barcelona. Even Spain’s parliament lost power, as reported by public broadcaster RTVE.

Sports events were also affected; the ATP Tour announced that the Madrid Open tennis tournament was suspended for the day due to the blackout.

Consequences in Portugal

Portugal faced its own challenges during the outage. Many subway cars in Lisbon had to be evacuated, and disruptions affected operational courts, cash machines, and electronic payment systems. Additionally, traffic lights across Lisbon ceased functioning during this critical period.

REN characterized the unprecedented incident as a “rare atmospheric phenomenon,” drawing attention to the unusual circumstances surrounding the power loss.

The Science Behind the Outage

According to REN, extreme temperature variations within Spain led to what they described as “induced atmospheric vibration.” This phenomenon caused oscillations in very high-voltage power lines, resulting in synchronization failures between electrical systems. Consequently, these disturbances spread throughout the interconnected European power network.

However, Spain’s meteorological agency AEMET later refuted claims of unusual weather patterns on the day of the outage, revealing that no significant temperature changes were recorded at their weather stations.

Eduardo Prieto, the chief of operations for Red Eléctrica, explained that the instability in the power grid caused the connection between the Spanish and French electricity networks across the Pyrenees mountains to falter. This failure led to power supply issues on the Spanish side and briefly affected some regions in France.

Ongoing Investigations

Authorities have launched investigations to uncover the precise causes behind the major outage, indicating that further scrutiny will be applied to the incidents that unfolded.

In summary, the recent power outage in Europe highlights the vulnerabilities of the interconnected power grids that span across countries. With growing reliance on renewable energy sources such as solar, understanding and addressing these vulnerabilities is critical for ensuring future reliability and stability in energy distribution.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.