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Spain Says Power Grid Management Mistakes Caused April Blackout

Spain’s power grid collapsed in less than a minute on April 28.

Photographer: Cesar Manso/AFP/Getty Images

Takeaways by Bloomberg AI

Spain’s government said a nationwide blackout in April was caused by planning mistakes from the grid operator and a lack of spare supply from generators.

The grid didn’t have enough backup thermal plants operating during peak hours, when voltage on the network surged, Environmental Transition Minister Sara Aagesen said in a press conference Tuesday. This meant the grid lacked the tools to control those surges, leading to a chain reaction that sparked the outage.