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Spain and Portugal Launch Joint Effort to Investigate Massive Iberian Blackout

Four days after the unprecedented power failure, energy ministers from both nations lead a coordinated inquiry into the root causes as political tensions rise over energy policy.

Vivienda con placas solares para autoconsumo en Picanya.
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Mazón y Cano, en el centro, hoy en Nueva York

Overview

  • A peninsula-wide blackout on April 28 left Spain and Portugal without power for over eight hours, disrupting millions of lives and services.
  • The blackout was triggered by two rapid power-flow oscillations in southwestern Spain that overwhelmed the grid's automatic safeguards and cascaded across the system.
  • Spain and Portugal have formed a high-level monitoring group, led by their energy ministers, to investigate the incident and share findings with European authorities.
  • Red Eléctrica Española has provided all requested data to the government commission, but the exact cause of the oscillations remains undetermined, with no evidence yet of a cyberattack.
  • The crisis has intensified political debates, with opposition parties questioning the government's renewable energy strategy, while officials pledge transparency and systemic improvements.