Spain and Portugal blackout remains unexplained; specialists dismiss green tech as culprit
A Massive Blackout Sweeps Through Spain and Portugal
In an unprecedented turn of events, over 55 million people in Spain and Portugal found themselves in the dark for more than 12 hours last week, marking one of the most significant power outages in European history.
Although these countries are frontrunners in the adoption of renewable energy, particularly wind and solar, the cause of this catastrophic blackout has been dismissed as unrelated to these technologies by officials and experts from both nations.
Initial reports pointed towards a "rare atmospheric phenomenon" potentially disturbing the overhead power lines, but The Guardian reported normal weather conditions in Spain at the time. Confusing matters further, Portugal's electricity provider, Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN), initially pinned the blame on this atmospheric anomaly, citing internal temperature imbalances in Spain that initiated widespread disruptions. REN explained that these disparities led to unusual oscillations in high-voltage transmission lines, a phenomenon known as "induced atmospheric vibration."
Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro echoed this perspective, attributing the blackout to the problem starting in Spain. However, Spain's national meteorological agency, Aemet, challenged this theory in a statement released on Tuesday, confirming no unusual weather activity or abrupt temperature changes on April 28 according to its network of weather stations. The Spanish government conceded that the root cause of the outage remains undetermined, urging caution against premature conclusions.
Dr. Kang Li, Chair of Smart Energy Systems at the University of Leeds, suggested to Al Jazeera that a combination of factors was likely responsible. With forensic grid data analysis typically requiring several months, a preliminary report might be released in a few weeks.
This blackout, which occurred in April 2025, allegedly caused transportation chaos, rendered ATMs and traffic lights inoperable, and disrupted communication across the Iberian Peninsula. authorities are still investigating the root cause of the collapse, though it is confirmed that grid instability and interconnector failure were factors[1][3]. If you were thinking of an earlier blackout in 2023, no such event of this scale has been reported[2][3].
[1] - bne IntelliNews[2] - The Guardian[3] - Al Jazeera
- Despite Spain and Portugal being leaders in the adoption of renewable energy, the cause of the April 2025 blackout that affected over 55 million people was initially attributed to a "rare atmospheric phenomenon," but subsequent investigations found no evidence of weather disruptions.
- Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro and Portugal's electricity provider, Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN), pointed to imagining oscillations in high-voltage transmission lines due to internal temperature imbalances in Spain as possible causes, but Spain's national meteorological agency, Aemet, disputed this theory.
- As the root cause of the blackout remains undetermined, experts like Dr. Kang Li from the University of Leeds suggest a combination of factors, including grid instability and interconnector failure, may have contributed to the massive power outage.
- The disruption caused by this blackout resulted in transportation chaos, inoperable ATMs and traffic lights, and communication breakdowns across the Iberian Peninsula.
- The ongoing investigation into the events of April 2025 and the potential implications for grid reliability remain a topic of interest in environmental-science, technology, politics, and general-news circles.
