Freak disappearance of electricity triggered power cut, says Spain PM Sánchez

The massive blackout that left the Iberian Peninsula in the dark on Monday appears to have been sparked by the unexplained disappearance of 15 gigawatts of power from Spain’s electricity grid.

“This has never happened before,” said a grave-looking Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez at a press conference late on Monday evening. “And what caused it is something that the experts have not yet established — but they will.”

He added that “no hypothesis has been rejected, and every possible cause is being investigated.”

A spokesperson for the Spanish government told POLITICO that “at 12:33 p.m. 15 gigawatts of the energy being produced [in Spain] suddenly disappeared and remained missing for five seconds.”

They added that the amount of electricity that had suddenly vanished from the power grid was equivalent to 60 percent of the total being consumed nationwide at that time.

The sudden drop in available power destabilized Spain’s electricity grid, which is highly integrated with Portugal’s and linked  to the rest of Europe through a small number of cross-border interconnections with France.

Eduardo Prieto, director of Spanish transmission system operator Red Eléctrica, on Monday said the blackout had been caused by a “very strong oscillation in the electrical network” that led Spain’s power system to “disconnect from the European system, and the collapse of the Iberian electricity network at 12:38.”

The situation, which affected public transport networks, traffic lights, hospitals, and payment systems, is unprecedented.

Spain’s opposition to Israel’s war in Gaza and its support for Ukraine against Russia’s aggression have made it a major target for cyberattacks, and throughout the day there was heightened speculation that the crisis could be the result of nefarious action. The Joint Cyberspace Command, which reports to the Defense Staff and oversees cybersecurity, along with the National Cryptologic Center have launched investigations into the blackout.

Saying that it would likely be “a long night,” Sánchez said that it could take longer than expected to restore power to the entire country. He added that Spaniards should prioritize their welfare and try to work from home on Tuesday if possible.

“Spanish citizens should and can feel calm,” the prime minister said, adding that security forces are ensuring that order is maintained throughout the country.

30,000 members of the the country’s police force and the Civil Guard corps had been deployed across the country on Monday, and additional reserve units have been placed on standby, ready to be activated if needed.

This article has been updated.