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Re: "Gavin Newsom Fever," "Exceptional" power outage in Spain and Portugal affects millions of people

From Dimitris Tzortzakakis <noone@nospam.com>
Newsgroups alt.politics.europe.misc, alt.engineering.electrical, or.politics, sac.politics, talk.politics.guns, alt.global-warming
Subject Re: "Gavin Newsom Fever," "Exceptional" power outage in Spain and Portugal affects millions of people
Date 2025-05-01 19:19 +0300
Organization A noiseless patient Spider
Message-ID <vv06v8$3275u$1@dont-email.me> (permalink)
References <4b116725d9.1745882507@kmgus.hd> <XnsB2D19716474B3002CE8@0.0.0.1> <vv0508$30r81$1@dont-email.me>

Cross-posted to 6 groups.

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Στις 1/5/2025 6:46 μ.μ., ο/η Dimitris Tzortzakakis έγραψε:
> Στις 1/5/2025 12:51 π.μ., ο/η P. Coonan έγραψε:
>> On 28 Apr 2025, Green Morons <dipshits@greenparty.org> posted some
>> news:4b116725d9.1745882507@kmgus.hd:
>>
>>> BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — An unprecedented blackout brought much of
>>> Spain and Portugal to a standstill Monday, stopping trains, cutting
>>> phone service and shutting down traffic lights and ATMs for millions
>>> of people across the Iberian Peninsula.
>>>
>>> Spanish power distributor Red Eléctrica declined to speculate on the
>>> cause of the power outage that began around 12:30 p.m. Madrid time and
>>> said restoring power fully could take six to 10 hours. Head of
>>> operations Eduardo Prieto told journalists it was unprecedented,
>>> calling the event “exceptional and extraordinary.” By 8:35 p.m.,
>>> only 35% of energy demand had been restored, Prieto said hours later.
>>>
>>> Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said a “strong
>>> oscillation” in the European grid was behind the outage but the
>>> cause was still being determined. He asked the public to refrain from
>>> speculation, and urged people to call emergency services only if
>>> really necessary.
>>>
>>> It was the second serious European power outage in less than six weeks
>>> after a March 20 fire shut down Heathrow Airport in the U.K., and it
>>> came as authorities across Europe gird against sabotage backed by
>>> Russia.
>>>
>>> The Portuguese National Cybersecurity Center in a statement said there
>>> was no sign the outage was due to a cyberattack. Teresa Ribera,
>>> European Commission executive vice president in charge of promoting
>>> clean energy, indicated the same to journalists in Brussels and called
>>> the power outage “one of the most serious episodes recorded in
>>> Europe in recent times.”
>>>
>>> Spanish and Portuguese capitals affected
>>>
>>> The outage began after midday. Offices closed and traffic was snarled
>>> in major cities. In Barcelona civilians directed traffic. Train
>>> services in both countries stopped, leaving tens of thousands of
>>> passengers stranded. It wouldn’t be possible to restart trains later
>>> Monday even if the power returned, Spain’s Transportation Minister
>>> Oscar Puente posted on social media.
>>>
>>> The subway systems shut down. “I don’t know how I am going to get
>>> home,” said Barcelona resident Ivette Corona as she watched a large
>>> group of people fail to get on a bus that briefly stopped to squeeze
>>> in a couple of passengers.
>>>
>>> In Madrid, hundreds of people at a bus stop that takes travelers to
>>> the airport were trying to hitch-hike. Some held improvised signs to
>>> convince drivers to take them.
>>>
>>> “I’ve been here for almost three hours, trying to get someone to
>>> take me to the airport because my family arrived today and I can’t
>>> talk to them. This is terrifying,” said Jessica Fernandez, one of
>>> the many people at the bus stop.
>>>
>>> Hospitals and other emergency services switched to generators. Among
>>> those most affected were homebound patients dependent on oxygen
>>> machines. Gas stations stopped working.
>>>
>>> It was not possible to make calls or send text messages on most mobile
>>> phone networks, though some people managed to connect on certain
>>> messaging apps with intermittent data connections. People searched
>>> stores for battery-powered radios to stay informed.
>>>
>>> It is rare to have such a widespread outage across the Iberian
>>> Peninsula, with a combined population of about 60 million people.
>>> Spain’s Canary Islands, Balearic Islands and the territories of
>>> Ceuta and Melilla, located across the Mediterranean in Africa, were
>>> not affected.
>>>
>>> Spain’s prime minister convened an extraordinary meeting of the
>>> National Security Council. Four regions of Spain declared an emergency
>>> and asked the central government in Madrid to take over management of
>>> the crisis. The Portuguese Cabinet convened an emergency meeting at
>>> the prime minister’s residence. Portuguese Prime Minister Luis
>>> Montenegro said he had spoken several times to Sánchez and expected
>>> power to be restored by the end of the day.
>>>
>>> Portugal’s government said the outage appeared to stem from problems
>>> outside the country, an official told national news agency Lusa.
>>>
>>> Electricity was being pulled from Morocco and France to restore power
>>> to southern and northern Spain, Spain’s prime minister said,
>>> thanking their governments. Spain was also increasing the production
>>> from hydroelectric and combined cycle thermal power plants.
>>>
>>> Airports working on backup systems
>>> A graph on Spain’s electricity network website showing demand across
>>> the country indicated a steep drop around 12:30 p.m. from 27,500
>>> megawatts to near 15,000 megawatts.
>>>
>>> Spanish airports were operating on backup electrical systems and some
>>> flights were delayed, according to Aena, which runs 56 airports in
>>> Spain, including Madrid and Barcelona.
>>>
>>> In Lisbon, terminals closed and tourists sat outside waiting for news
>>> about flights.
>>>
>>> “We haven’t seen any plane arriving or departing in the 50 minutes
>>> we’ve been waiting here,” Dutch tourist Marc Brandsma told The
>>> Associated Press.
>>>
>>> The Spanish Parliament in Madrid closed. Play at the Madrid Open
>>> tennis tournament was suspended.
>>>
>>> Some took advantage of the lack of connectivity to enjoy the sunshine
>>> on restaurant terraces, parks and beaches. Barcelona’s streets
>>> filled with throngs of people milling in front of darkened stores and
>>> exchanging information.
>>>
>>> “We are lucky. Some people got trapped in the metro. And there is a
>>> positive side: We are talking more with each other,” said Monste
>>> Cortés in Barcelona. She said dinner would be sliced bread and cold
>>> cuts.
>>>
>>> The owner of a popular ice-cream shop in Madrid began giving ice cream
>>> away to people passing by. “After about two hours that the power
>>> went out, I realized that the ice cream would start going bad,” said
>>> owner Mario Solares. He said he estimated his losses at about 3,000
>>> euros. “Hopefully we can recover some of this money with the
>>> insurance or some other way, we’ll see,” Solares added.
>>>
>>> The hunt for connectivity
>>> As hours passed, so did the concern of those unable to reach loved
>>> ones. Authorities in Barcelona have set up shelters for those unable
>>> to return home to spend the night.
>>>
>>> Rubén Elvira, his wife and two daughters joked with friends on
>>> parting that they would have to “write letters” to communicate.
>>>
>>> In Terrassa, an industrial town 50 kilometers (30 miles) from
>>> Barcelona, stores selling generators were out of stock.
>>>
>>> Portugal’s National Authority for Emergencies and Civil Protection
>>> said backup power systems were operating.
>>>
>>> In Portugal, a country of some 10.6 million people, police placed more
>>> officers on duty to cope with increased requests for help, including
>>> from people trapped in elevators.
>>>
>>> Several Lisbon subway cars were evacuated, reports said. Courts
>>> stopped work and ATMs and electronic payment systems were affected.
>>>
>>> https://apnews.com/article/spain-portugal-power-outage-electricity-b0c5
>>> fb ca49b8422248c4f933e20303b3
>>
>> 56% of Spain's energy is renewable.
> what does this figure mean? 56% of installed power (MW) or 56% of energy 
> (MWh)?and when?when the wind blows and the sun shines or when not? 
> remember that electricity has to be generated on the fly, and supply has 
> to meet demand at any moment.
> According to an article I read, Spain lost an UHV transmission line to 
> France,possibly due to an overcurrent trip, due to over-generation of 
> renewables they lost all 7 nuclear stations (they couldn't export the 
> surplus anymore to France) due to over-frequency trips, they tried to 
> synchronize gas stations and pick up loads, they failed so there was an 
> under-frequency trip that isolated the Ibiric peninsula grid from the 
> rest of Europe. Spain has proudly phased out coal and is basing heavily 
> on renewables.
> Here, in Crete there is much protest on aggresively installing 
> renewables, "every hill a wind-turbine and every stream a small hydro"
> because a wind farm means destroying nature to build roads to carry all 
> the necessary equipment, razing off the peaks to install the turbines, 
> the fundaments of which need 900 cubic meters of concrete and 900 tons 
> of steel at least, not to mention the transmission lines and 
> distribution lines for smaller windparks. Also, when the turbine reaches 
> its end of life, it can't be recycled, it can't be disposed of and it 
> can't be burned because its wings are made of balsa wood and some very 
> strong resin (definitely not steel).
> This reminds me of the sheep chant in George Orwell's animal farm"Four 
> legs good, two legs bad" everything that has a chimney (or a muffler) is 
> bad and has to go, and electric cars and renewables are the embodiment 
> of good.
there was a similar incident in Athens, in 2004, where in summer, in 
peak demand, they fired up a heavy fuel station, close to Athens, and 
when it had synchronized and was about to pick up loads, they lost it 
due to a drum trip, following the opening of the 400 kV circuit breakers 
that connected Athens with transmission lines to the lignite area of 
Kozani, W.Macedonia, also the North to the South. Subsequently the 
voltage in the 150 kV rails dropped to zero.
And in Thessaloniki, a 400 kV potential transformer exploded, the debris 
partially destoyed a 400/150 kV autotrasformer, and until a replacement 
arrived from India, electricity had to be rationed.
Under normal operating conditions, the loss of a heavy loaded 
transmission line can lead to a black out. Say one that supplies a city. 
Due to a forementioned over frequency trip of all units.

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Thread

"Gavin Newsom Fever," ‘Exceptional’ power outage in Spain and Portugal affects millions of people Green Morons <dipshits@greenparty.org> - 2025-04-28 23:21 +0000
  Re: "Gavin Newsom Fever," "Exceptional" power outage in Spain and Portugal affects millions of people "P. Coonan" <nospam@ix.netcom.com> - 2025-04-30 21:51 +0000
    Re: "Gavin Newsom Fever," "Exceptional" power outage in Spain and Portugal affects millions of people Dimitris Tzortzakakis <noone@nospam.com> - 2025-05-01 18:46 +0300
      Re: "Gavin Newsom Fever," "Exceptional" power outage in Spain and Portugal affects millions of people Dimitris Tzortzakakis <noone@nospam.com> - 2025-05-01 19:19 +0300
        Re: "Gavin Newsom Fever," "Exceptional" power outage in Spain and Portugal affects millions of people Klaus  Schadenfreude <klaus.schadenfreude.Zwergent�ter.@gmail.com> - 2025-05-01 09:26 -0700
      Re: "Gavin Newsom Fever," "Exceptional" power outage in Spain and Portugal affects millions of people JTEM <jtem01@gmail.com> - 2025-05-01 13:40 -0400
    Re: "Gavin Newsom Fever," "Exceptional" power outage in Spain and Portugal affects millions of people JTEM <jtem01@gmail.com> - 2025-05-01 13:33 -0400

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