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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Electric grid suffered two 'disconnection events'
More is through from Spanish electricity grid operator REE, which we earlier reported had ruled out the possibility of a cyberattack in its early assessments.
The electricity system was hit by a dramatic power generation loss in southwestern Spain, that caused instability in the system that led to its disconnection from the French grid.
Systems recovered from the first disconnection, but the second one triggered power cuts across Spain and Portugal.
That’s according to the company’s system operations chief Eduardo Prieto, who said quite possible that the affected generation was solar, but it was to early to say for sure.
Mr Prieto said on Tuesday the system was now stable and working normally.
Inside 12 hours of chaos in Spain during an unprecedented power blackout
Inside 12 hours of chaos in Spain during an unprecedented power blackout
Spain-Portugal power outage in numbers
The power outage across Spain and Portugal lasted 11 hours, from around 12:30pm local time til 10:30pm at night
30,000 police were deployed across the country to keep order as Spain’s interior ministry declared a state of emergency.
Emergency services in Madrid saw nearly 5,000 calls from the start of the blackout at 12.33pm on Monday until 7am next day.
In Catalonia, there were around 14,000 calls to 112 between noon on Monday and 8am Tuesday, rising from approximately 7,100 calls received on a usual day.
The Valencian Community recorded nearly 32,000 calls, the highest among regions that shared data, while the Basque Country received 3,500 - twice the usual number - mostly for elevator rescues and power issues.
At least seven people died during the power outage, with authorities continuing to investigate how the blackout may have impacted fatalities.
Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez said that the country suffered a loss of 15GW of electricity generation in five seconds, equivalent to 60 per cent of national demand.
Red Electrica boss reaffirms company's success restoring power supply as pressure mounts
Red Electrica president Beatriz Corredor has expressed her gratitude to the teams at the grid operator who worked “day and night” to overcome the blackout.
The company affirmed they were able to do it in “record time. Without a single mistake. Without rest.”
“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 follows mounting pressure from Spain’s opposition as the cause of the blackout remains unknown.
Experts say Spain-Portugal blackout is a warning
Millions across Spain and Portugal were left in the dark on Monday as an unprecedented power outage brought much of the Iberian peninsula to a standstill.
It took almost 23 hours for Spain’s electrical grid to declare that systems were back up and running as normal, with the outage affecting traffic lights, street lamps, payment terminals, and screens. Domestic and international transport was badly hit with metro systems grinding to a halt and communication networks faltering, leaving many wondering what had gone wrong. Hundreds of flights were canceled at airports across Spain and Portugal.
The governments of both countries are still in the dark about the reason for the mass electrical outage. Spain’s national power company, Red Eléctrica, said it did not have “definitive conclusions” about the reasons for the outage.
Conspiracy theories began popping up, including international sabotage, a cyber attack or even renewables being responsible for the outage.
Prime minister Pedro Sanchez said his government had not ruled out any hypothesis. "We must not rush to (conclusions) and (commit) errors through haste," Mr Sanchez said on Tuesday.
Stuti Mishra and Shweta Sharma report:
What caused the Spain and Portugal blackouts?
EU urges need for a survival kit following blackout
The EU’s top official for crisis prevention has said that the major blackout which hit Spain and Portugal has highlighted the need to have a survival kit at the ready for the first hours or day of an emergency.
European Commissioner Hadja Lahbib said the outage was just the sort of event the EU executive had in mind when it presented its “preparedness strategy” last month, including a recommendation that EU citizens have a 72-hour survival kit.
“What happened in Spain and Portugal and partly in France shows that we need to be prepared. And it's not about alarming our people. It's not about war. It's about all kinds of hazards,” she said.
Lahbib said a key lesson from the blackout was to have some cash. “In times of crisis, of hybrid threats, your cards, bank cards can be just a piece of plastic, unfortunately, so you need to have some cash, but you need also to have a torch, some water, some food and so on.”
WATCH: How Britain's holiday haven became a ghost town during the power outage
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.
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