Spain-Portugal blackouts latest: Head of Spain’s power grid refuses to resign as officials hunt for cause
Power has been restored to tens of millions but the cause of the power cut remains unknown
Spanish grid operator Red Electrica’s boss has said she is not considering resigning as the energy firm faces mounting pressure while officials hunt for the cause of the major power outage that hit Spain and Portugal on Monday.
Chairwoman Beatriz Corredor said it was incorrect to link the massive blackout that hit the countries to the high share of renewable energy in the country’s total generation.
“I am not contemplating resignation”, she told radio station Cadena SER.
The firm posted on social media in praise of their response to the blackout that hit Europe at 12.30pm earlier this week, which brought transport to a standstill, wiped out mobile network and Wi-Fi coverage and water access for some.
“In less than 24 hours, they have turned around an unprecedented situation thanks to their dedication and professionalism.We continue working with the same vocation of service.”
This comes as Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez met with grid operators asking for their co-operation in finding the cause, he said: “We must undertake the necessary improvements to guarantee the supply and future competitiveness of our system.”
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What we know about Monday's sweeping power outage in Spain and Portugal
The sweeping power outage that hit Spain and Portugal this week has raised questions about the electricity grid in a region not normally known for blackouts.
Monday's outage, one of the worst ever in Europe, started in the afternoon and lasted through nightfall, affecting tens of millions of people across the Iberian Peninsula. It disrupted businesses, hospitals, transit systems, cellular networks and other critical infrastructure.
Authorities in Spain and Portugal are still investigating exactly what caused the failure, though some information has emerged about happened.
Read to know everything that happened.
What we know about Monday's sweeping power outage in Spain and Portugal
Did Spain’s push for renewable energy have any impact on its mass power blackout?
Some have jumped on the suggestion that Spain’s push to use renewable energy had made an impact. Last year, renewables accounted for 53 per cent of the country’s power generation. Solar photovoltaic (PV) accounted for 59 per cent of Spain's electricity at the time of the blackout, wind nearly 12 per cent, nuclear almost 11 per cent and combined cycle gas plants 5 per cent, Red Electrica data showed.
In a span of just five minutes, between 12.30pm and 12.35 pm local time on Monday, solar PV generation plunged by more than 50 per cent to 8 gigawatts (GW) from more than 18 GW, the data showed.
The Independent’s climate correspondent Nick Ferris explains:
Did Spain’s push for renewable energy have any impact on its mass power blackout?
How is power being restored to cities?
Power has started returning to households with more than 99 per cent of the country’s supply restored.
A "black start" is the process of restoring power after a major cut.
It involves gradually restarting power plants individually and reconnecting them to the grid.
As Spain tried to get more power back on Monday it turned more gas and hydropower plants online and increased power imports from France and Morocco.
Spanish authorities investigating seven deaths during power blackout
Authorities are investigating seven deaths and their links to the mass power blackout in the country on Monday, state broadcaster RTVE reported.
At least six people died "under different circumstances" in the towns of Ferrol, Dumbría, Betanzos (A Coruña), and Taboadela (Ourense).
A man died in a fire started by a candle in the Carabanchel neighborhood of Madrid, following the outage.
Spain's Civil Guard found the bodies of an elderly couple, aged 81 and 77, along with their son,56, at their home in Taboadela, a town in the northwestern region of Galicia.
Authorities believe the three died from carbon monoxide poisoning, likely caused by fumes from a generator located outside the house. One of the victims is said to have suffered from respiratory problems and occasionally needed breathing support.
Three more deaths linked to the outage were reported on Monday in Galicia: a 59-year-old man with health issues in Ferrol, an 80-year-old man in Betanzos, and an 86-year-old man in Dumbria.
Spanish military assisted 7,117 people during power outage
The Spanish armed forces said they responded to 7,117 emergency calls from people since the outage began on Monday.
It was in addition to support for hospitals and other facilities during the crisis that saw millions of people stranded or stuck in various places.
According to the Ministry of Defence, the military assisted 7,117 people and distributed 4,465 blankets, 1,612 rations and 3,520 bottles of water.
A state of emergency was declared in Spain and Portugal after the two countries were plunged into darkness.
Travelling to Spain or Portugal after power outage? Simon Calder explains your rights
No effects in the UK from Spain and Portugal power cuts
Power cuts in Spain and Portugal had "no effects in the UK" but the UK government is monitoring the situation and "any lessons learned from this event", an energy minister has said.
Kerry McCarthy told the Commons: "Well, first of all, I think the whole House will want to send support to Spain and Portugal following the incidents yesterday.
"There were no effects in the UK but we do continue to closely monitor the situation and any lessons learned from this event.
"I'm not going to speculate as to the causes of that event but what we need to do is to ensure that our own systems are as resilient as possible."
Ms McCarthy’s response came to the DUP's Gregory Campbell, the MP for East Londonderry, who had raised questions over the reliance on net zero emissions.
"Given the sheer scale of the outages in both Portugal and Spain over the past few days, is it likely that the conference will consider and possibly conclude that there is some correlation between the obsession with net zero and what happened in Portugal and Spain?" he had asked.
Spanish PM calls for answers over cause of blackout
Yesterday Spain’s prime minister Pedro Sanchez held an emergency meeting with the private energy sector operators where he asked them to collaborate with the government to identify the causes of the blackout.
He said on social media: “I held an emergency meeting with the private electricity sector operators. I thanked them for their work in restoring power quickly and asked them to work with the government and independent bodies to identify the causes of the incident.
“We must undertake the necessary improvements to guarantee the supply and future competitiveness of our system.”
In picture: The Madrid open restarts following the blackout
UK must wait for blackout cause to learn lessons to strengthen energy resilience
UK environment secretary Steve Reed has said the UK must wait to see what cause blackouts in Spain and Portugal before learning lessons to strengthen its energy network.
Mr Reed said on Times Radio: “We’re constantly looking at our own at our own resilience. There's a subcommittee of cabinet chaired by Pat McFadden that is doing that day in and day out.”
“When it comes to what's gone on in Spain and Portugal, we need to have a look at exactly what their investigation finds out, and then see what lessons we can learn from it.
“But it's difficult to learn the lessons until they find out what's caused it.”
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