Monday’s massive blackout in the Iberian Peninsula made us all aware of how integral electricity is to our everyday lives. Millions of EU citizens were left without power, in what Commissioner Dan Jorgensen defined as “the most severe incident for almost two decades in Europe”.
Banking systems were interrupted, auto traffic control systems went dark, metros were stopped, flights were cancelled and intercity trains were halted. Hospitals were particularly affected, with many having to activate on-site generators and reduce services until power was restored.
Only time will tell us what exactly plunged Iberia into darkness. However, this extraordinary event serves as a powerful reminder of how critical the power grid is and, as such, that we must give it the attention it deserves.
That’s why this week’s #FridayFeature is dedicated to analysing the situation and reflecting on some key topics we are advocating for.
What happened
On Monday 28 April, between 12:33 and 13:30 CET, Spain’s transmission system was disconnected from the European grid at the 400 kV level due to an issue with a power line connecting French and Spanish Catalonia. The fault triggered a domino effect, disrupting electricity supply not just in Spain but also in Portugal, Andorra and parts of France.
“What we do know is that we had a very serious incident – one that has had major impacts in several European countries at the same time. Something that is very, very rare” Eurelectric’s Secretary General Kristian Ruby told BBC radio.
While the cause of the blackout is yet to be defined, there were reports of oscillations in the high voltage lines before the power shut down, and that these oscillations caused synchronisation failures between the electrical systems.
What can we learn
Until an investigation can confirm what exactly happened, we can only speculate as to what caused such an extraordinary event. Indeed, the situation already gives us some food for thought on what is needed to prevent future such events.
Future-proofing the grids
First, it is clear that investing in a resilient grid is no longer optional. With 30% of Europe’s grid infrastructure being over 40 years old, it is time to modernise.
The success of Europe’s energy transition depends on an extended, fully digitalised grid that can manage the amount of renewables capacity that is set to come online in the coming years. Making the grid fit for this purpose will require an annual investment of €67 billion from now until 2050.
That being said, existing technologies and innovative investment strategies can help reduce these costs. By optimising grid use, annual investment needs could drop down to €55 billion annually – without compromising resilience or performance. To learn more about how this is possible, be sure to check out our study on grids.
“As society relies more and more on electricity, it’s crucial that electricity is reliable.”
Kristian Ruby – Eurelectric, Secretary General
Flexibility
Flexibility is another piece de resistance at Eurelectric, meaning the ability to adjust both power generation and consumption in response to signals from the grid to ensure security of supply and avoid blackouts.
Due to increasing penetration of variable renewables, ensuring security of supply for the power sector means balancing these supply and demand fluctuations. Today, interconnectors are our greatest source of flexibility. During the 2022-23 energy crisis, they helped limit price volatility (not to mention generate 34 billion in savings for energy users), and helped support the system during extremely exceptional events.
It is therefore crucial to invest further in flexibility solutions and in modernising grids that can incorporate both supply-side and demand-side flexibility.
The inertia factor
Another element that is being now discussed is the inertia within the power grid, and how it could have helped limiting the scale of the blackout. But what are we talking about exactly?
In one of our in-detail articles, we explained that in conventional power systems, most electricity comes from big spinning machines in coal, gas, nuclear or hydropower plants. These giant turbines don’t just make electricity -they also act like energy flywheels. While they’re spinning in sync with the grid (at 50 Hertz), they also store a bit of kinetic energy.
When something suddenly goes wrong, those spinning machines can quickly release some of that stored energy. It’s like a quick jolt to steady the grid and buy a few seconds for backup systems to kick in. That cushion is what we call inertia, and without it, frequency can alternate fast, leading to outages.
Conclusion
Monday’s blackout is a stark reminder that the electricity grid is the backbone of our society. With electricity playing an increasingly important role, we need to create all the conditions for enabling a secure electricity supply.
Indeed, it showed us all that the need to modernise and reinforce Europe’s electricity grid is urgent and unavoidable. Now is the time to invest in the infrastructure that powers everything.
Other articles you might be interested in:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/spring-has-sprung-renewables-bloom-flexibility-still-needs-cowoe
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/redefining-energy-security-age-electricity-eurelectric-ppqge
This blog post was originally published as part of Eurelectric’s LinkedIn Friday Features. Subscribe here to stay updated and never miss an edition.
Disclaimer: This article is for communication purposes only and may not reflect Eurelectric positions. Any positions taken in this article shall not be attributable to Eurelectric’s official positioning. Official Eurelectric positions are reflected only in position papers published here.