Power outages in Spain and Portugal remain a mystery, but leaders vow to resolve and prevent recurrence

The Spanish government has set up a special committee to figure out what causes it Large-scale power outage Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced on Tuesday that this hit almost the entire country, highlighting that there was no exclusion of potential reasons. He also joined the broader European Union, vowing to prevent the recurrence of grid failures, all of which will take everything necessary, the ground of most of the Iberian Peninsula composed of Spain and neighboring Portugal – stopped a darkness until Tuesday morning.

“All necessary measures will be taken to ensure this does not happen again,” Sanchez said at a press conference in Madrid.

The power outage, which was still unexplained on Monday, was the worst ever in Spain and Portugal, with a total population of about 60 million. According to the Associated Press, about 49 million residents in Spain have seen power generation drop by about 15 GW, about 60% of the typical real-time demand in the country – starting at noon Monday in just five seconds.

Spanish electricity distributor Red Eléctrica said earlier Tuesday that about 99% of the power capacity has been restored after many residents in the Spanish capital Madrid and many residents in Lisbon, neighbouring Portugal, fell asleep in total darkness.

Offices across the Iberian Peninsula were closed, leaving traffic amid chaos on Monday. Airports and trains and subway systems will stop working, ATMs will stop operating, and many mobile phone networks will be reduced. Gas-powered generators and battery-powered radios fly out of the shelf.

What caused the power outages in Spain and Portugal?

Sánchez said on Monday that the broader European grid he called “strong oscillation” was behind the blackout, but that was never confirmed or elaborated by Spanish leaders or the country’s electricity providers, and officials later asked people to avoid speculation, stressing that there was no ruling. On Tuesday, Sánchez did rule out a possible problem, saying there was no lack of nuclear power capacity on Monday. About 20% of Spain’s power comes from its nuclear power plants.

Ren, a portuguese national power grid operator, said on Monday that Spain has a rare atmospheric phenomenon that is fixed to extreme temperature changes, but this explanation has never been confirmed. On Tuesday, Spain’s Meteorological Agency said it did not find any “anomalous weather or large aura” of “or unexpected temperatures” or previous violent temperatures unexpectedly.

Eduardo Prieto, who runs Spanish Red Eléctrica, said on Monday that although the cause is unclear, the power outage is unprecedented, “abnormal and extraordinary.”

The company said Monday there was no indication that a cyber attack would cause a power outage, but Sanchez said a separate investigation would continue to consider the possibility the next day.

“There is no sign of cyberattack,” said Antonio Costa, president of the European Council of the European Union. His colleague Teresa Ribera, one of the Executive Vice Presidents of the European Commission, appears to rule out sabotage, but she called the blackout “one of the worst episodes recorded in recent Europe.”

The power outage was the second attack on Europe in just one month. London’s Heathrow Airport, one of Europe’s busiest hubs, Closed For most of March 20, local power substations rose in the flames. The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but Metropolitan Police in London said it does not appear to be suspicious.

Although no official suggested that the fires in London or the power outage on the Iberian Peninsula were the result of evil activities, they all attracted attention due to the attention of Russian sabotage operations targeting Western European countries that support Ukraine.

A source familiar with the matter confirmed to CBS News in early November that U.S. and European law enforcement agencies are working together investigation Is the combustion device detonated in DHL logistics hubs in Germany and the UK in July 2024 a larger part Operation directed by Russian military intelligence an institution, a senior official of the Russian government or an external individual acting in Russia’s perceived interests.

There are many events Undersea cableIn recent years, ships usually connected in Russia or China have appeared in the region, mainly carrying electricity or telecommunications data.

European officials said the so-called sabotage act was part of Russia’s “hybrid war” against Ukrainian supporters and their democratic rivals in the West.

EU Ambassador to the United States Jovita Neliupšienė, Tell CBS News’ “60 Minutes” In November, Russia’s sabotage, plus assassination of Russia’s political enemies, and On European soilIt is part of President Vladimir Putin’s willingness and ability to challenge “European commands, stability and practical testing” to the mainland’s willingness and ability to respond to such actions.

“In fact, all these destructive, network or attacks on critical infrastructure are actually happening on EU and NATO territory. They are testing the extent to which they can move.”