PM of Spain acknowledges that determining the reason behind the blackout will require patience.
Spain and Portugal Grapple with Blackout Investigation
MADRID — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez addressed the parliament on the ongoing investigation into the April 28 blackout that affected mainland Portugal and parts of Spain. The power outage, initially originating in Spanish territory, left both countries without electricity from 11:33 am in Lisbon (12:33 pm in Madrid).
Mr. Sánchez emphasized that energy generation and distribution companies in Spain are facing requests for data from 4,200 units of the system during the relevant timeframe. Authorities are yet to pinpoint the causes of the blackout, but three electricity generation failures were identified seconds before the outage in southern and southwestern Spain.
During a lengthy speech, Sánchez reiterated the government's commitment to a thorough probe to shed light on the incident, assuming and demanding political responsibility. He vowed fealty to rigor, caution, and transparency in the investigative process. Sánchez claimed that there is currently no empirical evidence suggesting renewables or the lacking nuclear power plants were responsible for the crisis.
He also defended the government's investment in renewable energy, citing its contribution to national and European sovereignty, competitiveness, falling electricity prices, and climate change mitigation. Sánchez urged citizens to remain cautious of attempts to explain the blackout in debates about renewable and nuclear energy.
Preliminary findings indicate that the power outage stemmed from a rapid succession of three critical generation failures in southern and southwestern Spain, leading to a sudden load loss and a cascading grid disconnection. The investigation, carried out according to EU and national regulations, is ongoing, with a full technical report and root cause analysis pending.
The findings thus far suggest that the blackout was the result of a complex sequence of technical failures, rather than a single event, rather than a single event precipitated by renewables or insufficient nuclear power resources in Spain.
[1] Real-time data on power and frequency oscillations during the incident.[2] Preliminary sequence of system events leading up to and during the blackout, including generation losses, frequency control failures, and grid disconnection.[5] Regulatory guidelines governing the investigation of incidents affecting multiple member states as per Commission Regulation (EU) 2017/1485.
- The Spanish government is requesting real-time data on power and frequency oscillations from 4,200 units of the energy system in Spain during the time period surrounding the blackout that affected Portugal and Spain.
- The ongoing investigation into the causes of the blackout involves a sequence of system events, including generation losses, frequency control failures, and grid disconnection, that occurred in southern and southwestern Spain.
- The Spanish government is adhering to Commission Regulation (EU) 2017/1485 in its investigation of the blackout, which affected both Spain and Portugal, as the regulation governs investigations of incidents that impact multiple EU member states.
