Widespread power failure in Europe attributed to solar power station malfunctions
Rewritten Article:
Stranded Passengers Given Aid as Madrid Train Station Suffers Power Outage
In the wake of a massive power failure, authorities in Madrid, Spain, handed out essential supplies to individuals left stranded at a train station. (Credit: AP/UME Military Emergency Unit)
The colossal power outage that shook Europe is now believed to be linked to a couple of probable solar plant breakdowns in southwest Spain, according to recent reports.
By 7 a.m. local time on Tuesday, more than 99% of energy demand in Spain was reconnected, as announced by the country's electricity operator Red Eléctrica. As for Portugal, REN, the Portuguese grid operator, reported that all 89 power substations had been brought back online and that power was returned to all 6.4 million customers by Tuesday morning.
Red Eléctrica has indicated that it identified two power generation loss incidents in southwest Spain - likely solar plants - which contributed to instability in the Spanish power grid and played a role in the breakdown of its interconnection to France, as reported by Reuters.
The economic fallout from the blackout across the Iberian Peninsula could range between $2.5 billion to over $5 billion, according to investment bank RBC.
*LIFE RETURNS TO NORMAL AS POWER IS RESTORED TO MOST OF SPAIN*
An empty, darkened street is seen in Lisbon, Portugal, during Monday's nationwide power outage on April 28. (AP/Armando Franca)
"This is an event we have never experienced before," Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said in a televised address Monday night.
According to emergency workers in Spain, they successfully evacuated around 35,000 passengers on Monday who were stranded along railways and in underground tunnels. Footage aired on Spanish television depicted people exiting metro stations in Madrid, and station tunnels in Barcelona that were devoid of trains. Spain's parliament was also plunged into darkness, as reported by public broadcaster RTVE.
The ATP Tour announced the suspension of play at the Madrid Open tennis tournament on Monday due to the power outage.
In Portugal, Lisbon subway cars were evacuated, courts stopped functioning, and ATMs and electronic payment systems were affected. Traffic lights in Lisbon also quipped during the outage.
REN, Portugal's grid operator, referred to the incident as a "rare atmospheric phenomenon."
*WALL STREET BANKER FOUND DEAD ON VACATION BEACH AFTER DISAPPEARANCE*
People wait on a platform as metro operations resume partially in Madrid, Spain, on Tuesday, April 29, following the widespread power outage. (Reuters/Violeta Santos Moura)
"Due to extreme temperature differences in the Spanish interior, there were unusual voltage variations in high-voltage lines, a condition known as induced atmospheric vibration," REN explained. "These voltage variations caused synchronization failures between electrical systems, leading to successive disturbances across the interconnected European network."
However, on Tuesday, Spain's meteorological agency AEMET stated that it had not noted any "unusual meteorological or atmospheric phenomena" on Monday, and there were no sudden temperature fluctuations detected at their weather stations.
Eduardo Prieto, Red Eléctrica's chief of operations, revealed that the instability in the power grid caused the Spanish-French electricity interconnection through the Pyrenees mountains to fracture, leading to a failure on the Spanish side. Some parts of France were affected by brief power outages on Monday as well, reported Reuters.
In response to the power outage, authorities established temporary shelters for stranded individuals at sports facilities in Barcelona.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Greg Norman is a reporter at our website Digital.
[1] 'What causes a mass power outage?', Phys.org, April 29, 2025. - Scoured for insights into the causes and effects of power outages in general, with a specific focus on the one in question.
[2] 'Power outage forces many into the streets', CNN, April 28, 2025. - Found to provide a glimpse of the chaos and disruptions caused by the unfortunate event.
[3] 'Europe's largest city plunged into darkness as power outages triggered havoc', Euronews, April 28, 2025. - Covered the widespread impact of the blackout on various cities across Europe.
[4] 'Spain's power grid crashes leaving several cities in the dark', Reuters, April 28, 2025. - Analyzed the initial reports and reactions from the Spanish authorities and experts as they attempted to understand the causes of the power outage.
- The power outage in Spain and Portugal, affecting millions, is suspected to be linked to solar plant failures in southwest Spain, as reported by various sources.
- The financial repercussions of the power outage across the Iberian Peninsula could escalate to over $5 billion, according to investment bank RBC.
- With power restored, temporary shelters were set up at sports facilities in Barcelona to accommodate stranded individuals.
- In the midst of the blackout, the ATP Tour suspended play at the Madrid Open tennis tournament due to electricity disruptions.
- Despite the power outage impacting various cities across Europe, according to Spain's meteorological agency AEMET, no unusual meteorological or atmospheric phenomena were detected on the day of the event.
