The main power cuts in large areas of Spain and Portugal, as well as parts of southern France, knocked out the traffic lights and interrupted public transport and airport operations on Monday.
The authorities did not say what caused the cuts, but several denied any dirty game.
“Network operators in both countries [Spain and Portugal] They are working to find the cause and in restoring the supply of electricity, “wrote the president of the European Council, Antonio Costa, in a publication about X.
Costa was the Prime Minister of Portugal between 2015 and 2024.
“At this point, there are no indications of any cyber atago,” he said.
This is what we know:
What happened in Europe and when?
Energy cuts are based in much of the Iberian Peninsula around 10:30 GMT – 12:30 PM local time in Spain and 11:30 am in Portugal.
Parts of the south of France were also briefly affected, but the service was quickly restored.
The critical infrastructure was very affected: the subway systems in Madrid, Barcelona and Lisbon closed, while the main airports such as Madrid-Barajas and Humberto Delgado de Lisbon faced delays and partial closures.
According to the Spanish newspaper El Pais, the interruption “Spana back to the nineteenth century”.
“The trains do not work and the traffic lights are low, causing chaos. Many cities are completely dark,” said Al Jazeera, Vaessen, informing from Valencia airport in Spain.
“The authorities have declared that it is the first time in history that a large scale blackout has occurred,” he added.
Demand for electricity and real time. Spanish Red Electricity data. This is the thing now, seven hours after the batacazo: slow recovery, but still far from normal. #Blackout pic.twitter.com/8VCCXSUIDN
– José María Montero S (@Monteromonti) April 28, 2025
Translation: Demand of electricity in real time. Electric network data. This is how things are now, seven hours after the blackout: slow recovery, but still far from normal.
The graph shows that the use of electricity fell from approximately 26,000 megawatts to only 12,000 in a few minutes.
Where did the interruption happen?
Spain and Portugal, home of around 60 million people together, were the most affected.
- Spain: The main urban centers such as Avila, Madrid, Murcia, Galicia, Alicante, Zaragoza, Barcelona and Seville reported generalized interruptions. The Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands were not affected.
- Portugal: Lisbon and Porto experienced comparable challenges.
- Southern France: Parts of the Basque Basque Country saw power cuts. But officials of the French electricity transmission network said the interruptions lasted only a few minutes.
- Morocco: Some reports suggested that Internet suppliers in Morocco He also struggled to maintain his services, briefly, because or network connections with France and the interruptions there.
What else was affected?
Madrid’s open tennis tournament was suspended for the day. The organizers said it would not be more action on Monday “to guarantee general security.”
The Madrid firefighters carried out more than 200 “elevator interventions” throughout the city, while health services carried out 167 interventions, mostly due to respiratory problems and anxiety attacks.
Meanwhile, in Lisbon, according to local media reports, people rushed to groceries to stock up on water and non -perishable products.
What caused the blackout?
Portugal Prime Minister Luis Montenegro said everything points to the great blackout that begins in Spain.
The exact cause is not yet clear, and although there is still no evidence of a cyber attack, Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez said he is not ruling out. He warned against speculation, but said that “no cause can be discredited at this time.”
The cyber security agency (ENISA) of the European Union, the cyber security arm of the block, said that in the current evidence it points to a cable failure.
But experts have also warned in recent weeks that an excess of solar energy generation in the network could trigger blackouts. At the beginning of April, the Belgium Electricity Operator warned that too much electricity generation could destabilize the network.
According to a Bloomberg report, Spain has seen a record number of hours with negative energy prices in recent months as more solar and wind energy has been fed to the network. However, until now, the excess offer had led to blackouts.
What is the latest on the ground?
Electricity has returned to north, south and west parts of Spain, the network operator said on Monday.
The Minister of Transportation of Spain, Oscar Puente, said that it is unlikely that medium and long -term trains services resume before tomorrow. Meanwhile, Electric Network has estimated that complete restoration could take between six and 10 hours.
Power has now been restored in parts of Catalonia, Aragon, the Basque Country, Galicia, Asturias, Navarre, Castilla y León, Extremadura, Andalucía and La Rioja, according to the authorities.
According to the Spanish news agency, electricity consumption in Spain had reached approximately 50 percent of the usual level at 4:30 pm local time (18:30 GMT).
The Portugal Network operator, said that production has resumed at the Castelo Do Bode hydroelectric plant and the thermoelectric installation of Capada do Oosteiro.
With the thesis stations online again, energy consumption is gradually recovering in Portugal, starting in areas near plants and extending out, Ren said.