By: Jože Biščak
There was a festive mood, advocates of solar and wind power were beaming with pride, and the mainstream media reported the news in prime time and on front pages. It works, it is possible, they practically shouted when, on April 16th, Spain became the first country to meet its entire daily electricity demand from renewable energy sources (RES). Just over a week later, Spain’s electrical grid collapsed; on Monday, April 28th, Portugal, Spain, and parts of France near the Spanish border were left in the dark. What went wrong? To understand, we need to jump back to the year 2019.
Thursday, January 10th, 2019, at 9:00 PM Central European Time. Europe was enjoying a calm winter evening in the warmth of their homes. No one had the slightest idea that a real drama was unfolding in the energy centres of the European power grid. In less than two minutes, the frequency of the electrical grid across Europe plummeted toward the critical threshold of 49.8 hertz (the grid is synchronised at 50 hertz), and there was a real danger it would drop even lower, as an employee from one of the centres in Cologne later recalled – one of the few places that had an overview of the entire European system. It quickly became clear that the existing reserves would not be enough to stabilise the grid, and backup power plants could not be started quickly enough. Just a few seconds more, and the grid would have collapsed, leaving the continent to wake up the next morning in darkness and freezing homes. Fortunately, the French transmission system operator RTE acted swiftly and cut power to 22 major industrial consumers in France. Energy consumption dropped, the frequency stabilised, and by 9:25 PM, it had returned to 50 hertz. It was later revealed that the initial issues had started in Spain, France, and Germany. What was truly alarming, however, was the realisation of just how vulnerable the European power grid is without necessary (fossil fuel) reserves.
After this incident, the Austrian government commissioned an analysis of the unstable European grid. The results were published a year and a half later, and the report sounded like a dark prophecy: with 100% certainty, Europe would experience a major blackout within five years. The Spanish operator REE responded with a dismissive tone, saying that something like that could not happen in Spain. But it did – right in Spain, a country that generates most of its electricity from solar and wind power. Yet simple physics is not exactly on their side: insufficient “inertia” due to excess solar power causes fluctuations and can lead to system collapse. Even the left-leaning Guardian, a staunch supporter of a zero-carbon society, admitted that the European grid is not adapted for RES (renewable energy sources) and that the so-called green transition is moving too fast.
Climate activists were quick to blame the blackout and the plunge into “cave life” on the weather and a rare atmospheric phenomenon. Some even suggested a possible cyberattack. But no one can explain how a country could “lose” 15 gigawatts of electricity production in just five seconds – equivalent to 60% of its national demand. What exactly happened and what caused the electrical disaster on the Iberian Peninsula will likely be revealed by an investigation. Or maybe it will not. We shall see.
There are many reasons why the public might not believe the official explanation. And it would not be the first time that authorities misled the public and looked for scapegoats where there were none. It is hard to believe the Spanish government would admit that, because of enforcing the idea of “net zero emissions,” the country is likely to face more such “net zero electricity” days. This is the green future being promoted by the global left. Abandoning fossil fuels in favour of a “green future” comes at a cost. And that cost was seen by Spaniards and Portuguese these past few days – stuck in subways, elevators, trains in the middle of nowhere, and without a warm meal. Luckily, it is spring. Otherwise, they would be freezing.
If nothing else, the Spanish – and with them, Europeans – received a valuable lesson in what the green agenda and the pursuit of European climate neutrality truly mean. In short, it was a night to remember.
