Madrid (Europe Brief News ) – A massive power outage disrupted transport, businesses and the Madrid Open tennis event operations across Spain, Portugal and southwestern France on Monday. Millions faced panic as grid operators and governments attempted to reconstruct power during a time of puzzling electrical blackouts.
What happened behind this blackout?
At 11:33 AM (Western European Summer Time), the Iberian Peninsula’s power grid suffered a catastrophic failure—dubbed “el cero” (the zero) by Spain’s Red Eléctrica de España (REE). The blackout in Madrid and Barcelona, together with Lisbon, left these major cities without power as trains stopped and traffic lights went out while offices and residences entered emergency functions.
REE announced mid-afternoon that power restoration was beginning to affect northern, southern, and western areas yet cautioned against controlled grid restorations because overloads remained possible. Endesa (Spain’s largest utility) and Iberdrola operated their emergency procedures to maintain power stability.
REN said: “Due to extreme temperature variations in the interior of Spain, there were anomalous oscillations in the very high voltage lines (400 kV), a phenomenon known as ‘induced atmospheric vibration’. These oscillations caused synchronisation failures between the electrical systems, leading to successive disturbances across the interconnected European network.”
What caused the blackout?
Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro pointed to Spain as the origin, while Portugal’s Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN) blamed a “rare atmospheric phenomenon.”
In a statement, REN explained:
“Extreme temperature swings in Spain triggered abnormal oscillations in 400 kV power lines—a phenomenon called ‘induced atmospheric vibration.’ This caused synchronisation failures, cascading across Europe’s interconnected grid.”
Energy experts confirmed the risks of such temperature shifts. Taco Engelaar (Neara energy software firm) noted:
“Temperature variations alter conductor parameters, destabilising frequency.”
Georg Zachmann (Bruegel think tank) added that power plants in France and Iberia disconnected as grid frequency dipped below Europe’s standard 50Hz, worsening the collapse.
Was this blackout a sabotage?
Despite speculation, European Council President António Costa (Portugal’s former PM) dismissed cyberattack claims, calling the outage “unprecedented but unintentional.” Spanish energy minister Teresa Ribera confirmed no criminal activities took place during the power grid interruption.
The official National Security Council of Spain gathered for an urgent crisis assessment to determine the causes of the blackout. The Portuguese Prime Minister advised caution by declaring that enough evidence did not exist to dismiss any potential scenario.
- Public transportation was stalled, and traffic lights stopped functioning with no power, which led to urban traffic jams.
- Operating activities were completely suspended throughout businesses, including offices, shops, and factories.
- Large delays at the Madrid Open tennis tournament occurred because athletes remained stuck in indefinite suspension.
- Households across the region spent long hours without access to power and electricity.
The warning from analysts indicates that power grid disasters due to climate conditions might increase in frequency. For now, Iberia’s focus remains on recovery and preventing another “el cero.”
