Massive power outage in Spain and Portugal traced back to its root cause
The massive blackout that left Spain and Portugal in disarray earlier this year was no cyberattack, the Spanish government declared. Instead, it was a clusters**of technical bungles that led to the chaos in late April.
Airports, trains, internet, and even traffic lights were affected, causing havoc across both countries. Millions were affected, and parts of the two nations came to a standstill while authorities scrambled to identify the problem's source.
Rumors circulated that a cyberattack may have been responsible, but Spain's energy minister revealed earlier this week that the issue was actually a miscalculation by the Spanish power grid operator, REE.
Sara Aagesen disclosed that REE failed to turn on enough thermal power plants during peak hours on April 28, which led to a surge that ignited a chain reaction resulting in the power outage. She explained, "The system did not have sufficient dynamic voltage control capacity."
The much-anticipated government report, set to be released Tuesday, revealed some power plants that were legally obligated to regulate the grid's voltage neglected to do so. European electricity grids are maintained at a steady frequency of 50 Hertz to keep them stable. Even slight deviations can lead to damage.
Power plants should have regulated voltage and many should have absorbed all the reactive power during high voltage conditions. However, it seemed that they did not, according to Ms. Aagesen.
The investigation found no evidence of a cyberattack, she emphasized.
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Related Topics:- Portugal- Spain
- The Spanish government's investigation on the causes of the massive blackout in April revealed the incident was a series of technical errors by the power grid operator, REE, and not a result of a war or any cyberattack in the realm of policy-and-legislation or politics.
- The late-April blackout in Spain and Portugal, which disrupted several services including airports, trains, internet, and traffic lights, was not a case of foreign interference or aggression but rather a failure in dynamic voltage control capacity within the power system.
