French President Emmanuel Macron recently stated that Spain’s major blackout in April 2025 was caused by the country’s over-reliance on renewable energy.

Note that Spain’s actual renewable share is around 60% (from solar, wind, hydro, etc.), with nuclear at about 20%, though periods of very high renewable output (even approaching or hitting 100% momentarily) have occurred.

The Spanish government reportedly denied renewables as the cause, instead pointing to issues like solar farms switching off or other technical factors.

The blackout lasted up to 10-12 hours in most affected areas, causing widespread disruptions including halted trains, trapped elevators, and at least five reported deaths from related incidents like fires or generator failures.

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Emmanuel Macron has blamed Spain‘s mega-blackout on the country’s overreliance on renewable energy.

The French President said the debate over the cause of the enormous power outage, which plunged Spain into darkness in April leaving five dead and millions without power, was ‘a false one’. Daily Mail Online has the story.

The disruption, which also impacted Portugal and southwestern France, left areas in total darkness for nearly a day, cutting internet and telephone connection, while hampering transport. 

School pupils and workers were sent home for the day, but many others were stuck in lifts or stranded on trains in isolated rural areas. 

Madrid’s socialist government did not provide an explanation in the immediate aftermath of the outage, instead calling for patience while it was investigated. 

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has repeatedly rejected criticism of the country’s heavy reliance on renewable energy sources. 

And Spain’s electric grid operator Red Eléctrica de España pinned it on a significant and unprecedented drop in power generation. 

Mr Macron has now hit out at Spain’s reliance on renewable energies, claiming ‘no system can withstand such dependence’. 

He said: ‘The debate about Spain is a false one. Its problem is that it has a 100 per cent renewable energy model that its own domestic grid cannot support’

The blackout had nothing to do with the interconnections, he said, ‘but with the fact that no system, at least with current technology, can withstand such dependence on renewable energies.’

‘Stability in the energy mix is ​​needed, because otherwise, shocks that are too big occur. But it’s not just about interconnections. Networks are needed,’ he added.

Experts have also claimed that the nation’s heavy reliance on solar power leaves it vulnerable to future blackouts because of how renewable generators work compared with traditional power plants.

It has also prompted warnings about Ed Miliband’s race to net zero in the UK. 

Read the full story here.