Madrid/Lisbon, April 28, 2025 — Spain and Portugal have been hit by a massive power outage affecting major cities, including Madrid, Lisbon, Seville, Barcelona, and Valencia, as authorities scramble to restore electricity across the Iberian Peninsula.

Spanish grid operator Red Eléctrica confirmed the outage, describing it as a “major incident” impacting wide areas of Spain and Portugal. Reports also indicate disruptions in parts of France. Red Eléctrica stated that power restoration would be gradual, as engineers work on stabilizing the northern and southern sections of the network.

Power Cuts Disrupt Daily Life and Major Events

The power cuts caused significant disruption:

• Madrid’s underground system partially shut down and is under investigation.

• Traffic lights failed across Madrid and Lisbon, leading to widespread traffic jams.

• Metro services in Lisbon and Porto were suspended.

• Trains across Portugal also stopped running.

• The Madrid Open tennis tournament was suspended due to lack of power.

• Mobile networks were down in several regions, though some internet apps continued functioning.

Footage from Malaga showed metro passengers evacuating carriages and walking through tunnels, as emergency protocols were activated.

In Portugal, distributor E-Redes attributed the outage to “a problem with the European electricity system,” suggesting the issue may extend beyond Iberia into wider continental Europe.

“This is a wider European problem,” E-Redes said, adding that it had to intentionally cut power in specific areas to protect and stabilize the network.

Spanish Prime Minister Heads to Crisis Talks

Spanish media reported that Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is en route to Red Eléctrica’s headquarters to monitor the situation firsthand.

Spain’s public broadcaster RTVE said the blackout affected its newsroom, Spain’s Parliament, and multiple metro stations nationwide.

Locals across Barcelona, Valencia, and the Madrid suburbs reported the outage on community chat groups, while emergency services were dispatched to key intersections and public transportation hubs.

Affects Over 50 Million People

Spain and Portugal combined have a population of more than 50 million, but the precise number of people affected remains unclear.

The Portuguese police confirmed widespread impact across the nation’s transportation infrastructure, with metro, trains, and traffic systems brought to a standstill.