Despite the investigation is still ongoing on the Iberian blackout, Eurelectric proposes to take this incident as a starting point for a broader reflection on the security of supply challenges in an energy system increasingly based on renewable energy sources (RES). Our paper is structured around five key pillars: (i) governance and transparency, (ii) planning, (iii) flexibility (including system services), (iv) adequacy and (v) grid investments.
Regardless of the possible causes of the blackout, on which Eurelectric will refrain from commenting until all relevant investigations are concluded, and in particular, that of ENTSO-E, the severity of the event underscores the growing pressure on Europe’s electricity system. With millions of citizens left without power, the need to address the requirements of a modern energy system to ensure the security of electricity supply is evident. This need becomes even more pressing in light of mounting risks such as climate change, hybrid threats and supply chain vulnerabilities, combined with the fact that economy-wide electrification is a key driver of the EU’s competitiveness.
The recommendations of this paper are mostly covered in the February 2025 flagship study, Redefining energy security in age of electricity and other existing positions in Eurelectric position papers.
KEY MESSAGES
- Governance arises as a key area which needs to be urgently reviewed. The most pressing lesson is the urgent need to separate operational responsibility from investigative authority. Moreover, transparency is vital before, during and after disruptions. clear roles, timely information sharing, a clear line of communication and decision making and structured coordination across sectors are essential to ensure that all actors can respond effectively in emergencies and make informed decisions in a coordinated way that reinforce system resilience.
- Planning must evolve from reactive assessments to a forward-looking, holistic framework that continuously integrates flexibility, cross-sectoral interdependencies and structural risks, and enables Europe to anticipate possible disruptions and guide strategic investments in line with both fostering competitiveness and achieving long-term climate targets.
- Flexibility is critical for stability and resilience in a system increasingly reliant on variable renewables. This must be supported through clear investment signals. First, an appropriate remuneration for system services such as inertia, reactive power, voltage control and black start is necessary, ensuring resilience in an increasingly RES-based system. Second, integrations of flexibility in capacity remuneration mechanism, flexibility support schemes where needed and/or storage strategies could complete the flexibility framework where current markets fail to give sufficient visibility and incentives (e.g. as regards risk management and securing revenue in the long-term).
- Adequacy assessments must be grounded in operational realities, including real interconnection availability, and must anticipate (and not block) necessary national interventions initiatives where security of supply could be at risk, e.g., particularly when and where national adequacy assessments point to urgent capacity needs.
- Grid investments must be forward looking and accelerated via coordinated planning and fair remuneration to meet growing electrification and decentralisation needs. At the same time, we must serve customers in a resilient, cost-efficient manner, while ensuring interconnection gaps such as those in Iberia are urgently addressed through coordinated infrastructure planning.