Romanian energy minister calls for calm after major power outages in Spain, Portugal

Romania’s energy minister, Sebastian Burduja, issued a call for calm on Monday, April 28, after major power outages left Spain and parts of Portugal without electricity.

Burduja, a visible member of the Romanian executive, gave assurances that Romania is not likely to experience similar outages.

“In the context of the major power outages in Spain and Portugal, I am appealing to all Romanian citizens to remain calm. I am in constant contact with the National Energy Dispatcher. We currently have no problems in the national energy system. At the moment, we are covering our own consumption with what we produce and we are exporting over 200MW,” the minister said on Facebook.

Burduja also noted that energy experts are monitoring the situation in Romania and have managed difficult situations in the past.

A massive power outage affected all of Spain on Monday, April 28, causing widespread power interruptions and disruptions in the telephone network. Regions in Portugal and southern France, which are interconnected to the Spanish grid, also experience similar issues. The outage led to the cancelling of numerous trains and over 500 flights.

An investigation is underway into the causes of this incident.

In its latest update on Tuesday, April 29, Spanish power operator Red Electrica says "99.95% of demand has been restored." It's still unclear why the outage occurred and how it spread so quickly, but Portuguese prime minister Luis Montenegro insisted there was "no indication" of a cyber-attack, according to the BBC.

(Photo source: Inquam Photos | George Calin)