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Spain and Portugal have established a joint committee to investigate the cause of a major power outage that disrupted daily life across the Iberian Peninsula earlier this week, leaving millions without electricity, internet access, or public transport.
The blackout, which unfolded on Monday, has been described as one of the largest ever recorded in Europe. It plunged entire cities into darkness and severed critical communication networks in both countries. Despite the severity of the disruption, officials have yet to determine a definitive cause.
Following a bilateral meeting on Friday, Spain’s Minister of Ecological Transition, Sara Aagesen, and her Portuguese counterpart, Maria da Graça Carvalho, announced their countries would work closely together to pinpoint the source of the failure and to coordinate with European authorities.
“We will collaborate to identify the causes of the incident and implement the necessary measures to ensure this doesn’t happen again,” Aagesen said.
While the Spanish government has confirmed that roughly 60 percent of the country’s electricity usage — equivalent to 15 gigawatts — vanished in just five seconds, it remains unclear what exactly triggered the sudden drop. Authorities have acknowledged the unprecedented nature of the event and the complexity of tracing its origins.
Portuguese Energy Minister Carvalho told local media that a thorough and data-driven approach would be required. “This is something very complex and it will therefore take some time,” she said. “We need a lot of data to understand exactly what happened.”
Among the potential explanations under review is the possibility of a cyberattack, though this theory appears increasingly unlikely. Spain’s national grid operator, Red Eléctrica de España (REE), stated on Tuesday that it had found no evidence of intrusion in its control systems.
Instead, REE has pointed to two closely timed incidents, occurring just 1.5 seconds apart, as potential culprits. One of these may have affected solar energy production in the southwest region of Spain, though further analysis is needed.
As both nations continue to gather data and consult with energy experts, the investigation marks a significant step in addressing energy resilience and cybersecurity concerns across Europe’s electricity networks.
