Portugal and Spain experienced nationwide power outages on Monday, leaving millions of citizens without electricity. Although the exact causes of the widespread blackout are not yet clear, reports indicate problems with the European electrical grid, while a cyberattack has not been ruled out.
The Spanish government has convened an emergency meeting at the headquarters of the country’s electricity grid operator.
Preliminary reports suggest the outage may stem from a failure in the interconnected European power grid, potentially exacerbated by recent high demand and integration challenges with renewable energy sources.
Earlier reports indicated that the Prime Minister of Spain and the Minister of Energy are heading to the grid operator’s headquarters to monitor the situation firsthand.
Madrid’s Barajas international airport was left without power, while telecommunications have been affected as well. Meanwhile, other airports in both Spain and Portugal have experienced major disruptions, and some have come to a standstill.
In Spain, the electricity grid operator Red Eléctrica announced that power restoration efforts have begun in the northern and southern regions of Spain.
The blackout affected major cities, including Madrid, Valencia, and Barcelona, and communication networks, impacting internet and mobile services across the affected regions.
Government authorities have not yet issued an official statement, though Spain’s Ministry of the Interior has urged the public to remain calm while investigations are underway.
In Portugal, long queues of people were seen in front of ATMs unable to withdraw money. Authorities are urging citizens across Spain to avoid using their vehicles unless absolutely necessary.
According to Portugal’s national electric company, RENA, a fire in the southwest of France, on the Alaric mountain, which damaged a high-voltage power line between Perpignan and eastern Narbonne, has also been identified as a possible cause.
