A national grid operator and private power generation companies were to blame for a massive energy blackout in Spain and Portugal earlier this year, according to a report by the Spanish government. The 28 April blackout left businesses, schools, universities, government buildings, and transport hubs without power, causing traffic gridlocks and stranding people in lifts and on trains.
The grid operator, Red Eléctrica, had miscalculated its power capacity needs for that day, according to Minister of Ecological Transition Sara Aagesen. The regulator failed to activate another thermal plant, which would have helped regulate the grid’s voltage. Meanwhile, private generators were supposed to control voltage but did not absorb enough power during high tension.
The government has previously suggested that private electricity companies may have played a role in the blackout, and this report confirms their mistakes. However, there is no evidence of a cyber-attack causing the outage. The delay in presenting an explanation for the blackout drew criticism and intensified scrutiny of Spain’s energy model, with some suggesting that the increasing reliance on renewables may be to blame.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62d8k8edgxo