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Spain grid operator report warned of blackout risk from renewables
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The Picon I Solar PV Park, a 50MW solar photovoltaic power project owned and developed by the Spanish company Naturgy, is pictured in Porzuna, Castile-La Mancha region, on July 6, 2023. (AFP/Oscar Del Pozo)
T
he head of Spain's electricity operator REE downplayed Wednesday a recent report by the firm which warned of "severe" risks of power cuts linked to the "high" use of renewable energy in the country.
One of Europe's biggest ever power outages hit Spain and Portugal on Monday, cutting telephone and internet access, halting public transport and plunging cities into darkness. No firm cause for the blackout has yet emerged.
But Redeia, REE's parent company, warned in its annual financial report for 2024 published in February that "the high penetration of renewable generation without the necessary technical capacity to deal adequately with disturbances" in Spain "can lead to production cuts".
These blackouts "could become severe, even leading to an imbalance between production and demand, which would significantly affect the electricity supply", it added.
Asked about the report on Wednesday during an interview with news radio Cadena Ser, Redeia president Beatriz Corredor said it was "wrong" to link Monday's giant blackout to the high level of renewable energy use in Spain.
Renewable energy production "is safe" and "linking Monday's serious incident to the penetration of renewables is not true, it's not correct," she added.
The 380-page annual financial report was merely listing a series of potential risks as it is required to do by law, Corredor said.
"Renewable energies work in a stable way, they already have mechanisms that allow them to work practically" like "conventional" technologies, she added.
Redeia warned in its report that the "loss of firm production" due to the closure of "conventional" power plants that use gas and coal could lead to "greater difficulty in operating the system, an increase in production limitations and technical restrictions, as well as a possible impact on supply".
The report also warned of the "risk of an attack or incident affecting IT systems" which could "affect electricity supply" in Spain and "lead to costs and reputational damage" for Redeia.
Spain's top criminal court is investigating whether the blackout was "an act of computer sabotage" but REE has ruled out a cyberattack.
