Spain investigates power blackouts as possible cyber attack

Spain, Portugal and parts of southern France experienced major power outages on Monday, causing widespread disruption across the Iberian Peninsula and beyond.

The blackouts left cities without electricity, impacting essential services and causing travel chaos.

While the exact cause of the massive power failure remains under investigation, Spanish authorities are considering all possibilities. Incibe, Spain’s cybersecurity agency, announced it is investigating the possibility that the outages were triggered by a cyberattack.

In Spain, cities including Madrid, Seville, Barcelona, and Valencia were all affected. Airports faced disruptions, Madrid’s underground metro system was evacuated and traffic lights ceased to function.

Valencia’s metro service was entirely suspended, and the Madrid Open tennis tournament was temporarily halted. Spain’s electricity grid data indicated a sudden and significant drop in power at midday.

The Spanish grid operator, Red Eléctrica, confirmed the widespread outages and stated that it had activated plans to restore the supply, dedicating “all resources to solving” the disruption. The country’s railway operator, Renfe, reported that the “entire National Electricity Grid was cut off,” leading to the suspension of all train services.

Portugal, with a population of about 10.6 million, also experienced significant power disruptions. The outage affected the capital, Lisbon, surrounding areas, and regions in the north and south of the country. Portuguese distributor E-Redes attributed the blackout to “a problem with the European electricity system,” as reported by the Portuguese newspaper Expresso, and said it was compelled to cut power in specific areas to stabilize the network.

The outages affected various aspects of daily life. There were reports of mobile phone network disruptions, although some apps remained functional. In Lisbon, the subway system reportedly stopped operating, and traffic lights in the city centre were out.

The scale of the disruption is significant, with Spanish media reporting that millions of people have been affected, although official figures are yet to be released. The grid operators in both Spain and Portugal are working to fully restore power and determine the root cause of the incident.