Spain and Portugal Rush to Restore Power Amid Widespread Outage Investigation

A sweeping power outage struck millions across Spain, Portugal, and parts of France on Monday, causing significant chaos and disruption throughout the region. The blackout, which began around midday (10:00 GMT), quickly escalated, affecting major infrastructure and daily life. Trains were cancelled or stranded, traffic lights failed, and numerous airports experienced delays. Shops, homes, and restaurants were plunged into darkness, and mobile phone services were disrupted, creating widespread confusion and panic.

A key contributing factor was a reported issue with the power connection between France and Spain. Kristian Ruby, head of Eurelectric—the trade body representing Europe’s power industry—told the BBC that a “specific incident with an interconnector” between the two countries had occurred, resulting in the Spanish grid becoming disconnected from the wider European electricity network. However, Ruby noted that this was unlikely to be the sole cause of the blackout and suggested that additional, unidentified elements played a role.

In Spain, the effects of the outage were particularly severe. Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puente reported that by Monday evening, 11 trains remained stranded. The capital, Madrid, was heavily impacted, with residents advised to stay indoors, avoid driving, and refrain from contacting emergency services unless absolutely necessary. The city’s metro system was hit hard; commuters were left in darkness and confusion as power failed underground. One resident, Sarah Jovovich, described the scene as “hysterical” and “chaotic,” noting that people panicked when the lights went out and mobile services failed. When she exited the metro, she found the streets gridlocked, shops closed, and public transportation overwhelmed.

The situation also posed safety risks, particularly with people trapped in elevators across multiple buildings. Emergency services were called to 286 incidents in the Madrid region alone to rescue individuals stuck in lifts. Hospitals, too, were affected; several enacted emergency protocols, including suspending non-essential services.

Authorities worked quickly to restore power, though progress was gradual. By Monday afternoon, the Spanish electricity network warned that full restoration could take hours, and by evening, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez confirmed that 50% of power had been restored in Spain. Meanwhile, Portugal’s energy provider REN reported that 750,000 customers had their power restored. However, REN also cautioned that it could take up to a week to fully resolve the situation.

Despite the recovery efforts, a state of emergency remained in effect in some areas, giving local authorities the power to declare special status and receive emergency support. Both Spanish Prime Minister Sánchez and Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro urged the public not to speculate on the causes of the outage. Montenegro emphasized that there was “no indication” of a cyberattack.

By nightfall, the Spanish grid operator reported that power was gradually returning to the north, south, and west of the Iberian Peninsula. Investigations into the root cause of the outage are ongoing, with officials focusing on both the interconnector incident and other potential contributing factors. The event highlighted the vulnerability of interconnected power networks and the far-reaching consequences of infrastructure disruptions.