France denies involvement in blackouts in Spain, Portugal

The French power grid operator RTE has denied reports that the rolling blackouts in Spain and Portugal on April 28 were allegedly caused by a fire on a power transmission line between the French cities of Narbonne and Perpignan.

“There was no fire between Perpignan and Narbonne — that information is false. The cause of the incident has yet to be determined,” the company’s statement on social media said, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

The statement noted that work to restore the power system continues in France as well, which was also partially affected by the widespread outage.

Meanwhile, RTE is currently ready, if necessary, to supply up to 1.4 gigawatts of electricity to the power grids of the Iberian Peninsula.

​On April 28, 2025, a massive and unprecedented power outage struck Spain, Portugal, and parts of southwestern France, leaving millions without electricity and causing widespread disruption across the Iberian Peninsula.​

The blackout began at approximately 12:33 p.m. CEST, affecting major cities such as Madrid and Barcelona. Essential services were disrupted, including public transportation systems like metros and high-speed trains, which stranded passengers. Traffic lights failed, leading to significant congestion managed manually by police or locals. Hospitals operated on backup generators, and businesses, including major retailers like Zara, either closed or operated in the dark. ATMs and electronic payment systems were non-functional, prompting some stores to extend credit to regular customers or shut down entirely. ​

The outage also impacted major events, such as the Madrid Open tennis tournament, which was suspended. Airports experienced delays, and oil refineries, including those operated by Moeve and Petronor, halted operations.

By Khagan Isayev