The electricity is gradually returned to Spainafter the unprecedented blackout which hit the Iberian peninsula at noon Monday (28.04.2025).
According to data from the Spanish electricity network administrator (REE), until 04:00 local time (03:00 Greece), 87.37% of the electricity grid had been reinstated, after the general blackout that caused significant holidays in many areas.
The causes that have caused the power outage have not been clarified so far. Although at first there was a talk of cyberattack, then there was information that The blackout in Spain and Portugal was caused by a “rare atmospheric phenomenon” Known as “induced atmospheric disorder”.
The competent authorities are continuing investigations to identify the source of the damage and to ensure that it is not repeated.
The Spanish Ministry of the Interior declared a state of emergency after the nationwide blackout. The ministry added that the emergency regime would be applied to the areas that are demanding. So far, Madrid, Andalusia and Estamadoura have asked the central government to take on public order and other functions.
Also to enhance security will develop 30,000 police officers.
The situation in many parts of Spain due to the blackout was incredible. The planes stopped flying, the mobile phones were not responding to calls, canceled competitions such as Tennis Madrid Open were canceled and panic was prevalent in the streets by bewildered citizens.
Many rushed to an ATM to take cash. The roads were filled with people looking for desperate telephony network. Sirens and horns sounded, while many stood bewildered.
Office officials gathered on roads as their computers did not work, and large queues were formed outside banks, with some expressing their relief that were not trapped in lifts.
Just in.
Mass Blackouts in Spain, Portugal and in part of France.
Every single part of digital life from shops, to traffic lights, hospitals, airports, phones, and trains, all down.pic.twitter.com/ETDgtfE9wk
— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) April 28, 2025
‘Don’t listen to speculation’
About the serious incident, he spoke and the Spain Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
In his short message to the Spanish people, he stressed that one should not hear speculations and that the current has come back to the north and south, thanks to the network interconnections with the France and Morocco.
Hydroelectric power stations and gas stations are reopening across the country.
“We still have no conclusions about the causes. That is why I ask citizens, as we did in earlier crises, to be informed by official sources, “he said.
The Spanish prime minister said he hoped to quickly be repaired and assured that the state was “on foot”.
Sanchez also noted that the Payment and Digital Transaction Systems operate normally And no public security problems have been observed.
The telecommunications, however, are ‘at a critical point’ And that is why citizens should “use their phones responsibly and only for short calls”. The National Security Council will reunite in the evening to assess whether further measures need to be taken, he concluded.
The scenarios being considered
So far all scenarios are thoroughly examined. A headquarters were set up to address the incident to take all necessary measures to deal with the crisis.
The view of Spain from space right now is wild pic.twitter.com/cngBAnztZt
– Max Gagliardi (@max_gagliardi) April 29, 2025
Red Electrica claims that the power failure is excellent and completely unusual and is due to the electricity grid.
The Iberian countries are sharing a single electricity grid and according to the Portuguese, the voltage imbalance was responsible for the collapse. However, there are also voices referring to cyberattack against the electricity grid. A scenario that remains to be substantiated, the AFP reports.
My neighborhood in Madrid pic.twitter.com/rLRR7N70de
– Aitor Jarit (@Aitorjarit) April 28, 2025
The causes that may have caused the blackout, according to ERT, are 3:
- Cyberattack
- Overproduction of solar energy and other renewable energy sources
- Temperature fluctuations that caused ‘abnormal oscillations’