The great Iberian power cut need not spell disaster for renewables
But there are lessons to be learned
SHORTLY AFTER noon on Monday April 28th, Spain’s electricity grid suddenly and unexpectedly lost 15 gigawatts of power—equivalent to 60% of its national demand. The massive drop caused most of the country’s electricity system to shut down, followed by much of neighbouring Portugal’s. Trains and metros ground to a halt and 35,000 passengers across Spain had to be evacuated. Traffic lights stopped working; hospitals cancelled all non-essential operations; mobile-phone networks and the internet went dark.
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This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Shots in the dark”
From the May 3rd 2025 edition
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