Spain moves to strengthen power grid to prevent future blackouts

A government report released earlier this month concluded that a lack of voltage control capacity helped cause a chain reaction that brought down the network across mainland Spain and Portugal on April 28.

The system "had everything necessary" to work correctly on April 28th, but the measures "will protect us better", Ecological Transition Minister Sara Aagesen said in a statement.

The government will strengthen supervision of the electricity network through the competition watchdog, which will assess obligations to control voltage levels and inspect capacity to restore power.

Reforms to the grid aimed at better controlling voltage and absorbing fluctuations, two phenomena that affected the system before it crashed, will be accelerated.

The timeframe for installing new wind and solar energy facilities will be reduced and the government will facilitate developing power storage at renewable energy sites, notably through batteries.

The government report partly attributed the excess voltage in the system on April 28th to grid operator REE, which had lowered the capacity to deal with fluctuations on that day.

It also pointed to unnamed electricity companies for disconnecting their power plants inappropriately, exacerbating the chain reaction of power outages.

REE and Spain's main electricity company association have said they complied with their duties and blamed each other for not meeting requirements.