Massive European Power Grid Failure Calls for Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity
On April 28, 2025, a massive power outage struck Spain, Portugal, and parts of France, disrupting life across the Iberian Peninsula. The blackout began at 12:33 CEST and led to the sudden loss of 15 gigawatts of electricity, causing cascading failures across interconnected grids. While power was restored to most areas within 10 hours, some regions remained down for nearly 22 hours, with full recovery in Spain by 11:00 CEST on April 29. Portugal’s grid was also stabilized by early the next day using hydropower, gas turbines, and emergency imports from Morocco and France.