What Caused the Recent Power Outage in Spain, Portugal, and Southern France?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the recent power outage affecting Spain, Portugal, and southern France, exploring potential causes and factors contributing to the event. Participants speculate on various hypotheses including cyber attacks, environmental conditions, and the mechanical aspects of power generation and grid stability.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest possible causes for the blackout, including a cyber attack, extreme weather conditions, and mechanical failures related to the lack of rotating mass in the grid.
  • Others express skepticism about speculation without verified facts, emphasizing the need for patience as investigations unfold.
  • There is a discussion on the implications of reduced mechanical inertia in modern power networks, particularly with the shift from traditional generators to inverters.
  • Participants raise questions about the effects of frequency drops on electrical equipment and the dynamics of power flow in the grid.
  • Some contributions highlight the importance of understanding the role of rotating machinery in stabilizing grid frequency and the potential consequences of operating at lower frequencies.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a mix of agreement and disagreement, with some advocating for speculation based on existing knowledge while others prefer to await confirmed facts. The discussion remains unresolved with multiple competing views on the causes and implications of the outage.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the absence of verified information regarding the outage's root causes and the reliance on speculative theories without empirical evidence. The discussion also reflects varying levels of understanding about the technical aspects of power grid operations.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to those involved in electrical engineering, power systems, and energy policy, as well as individuals curious about the reliability and challenges of modern power networks.

  • #61
when it happened i was sent some frequency captures from a friend and the frequency went far below any tolerances for dynamic stability of synchronous machines. I'm having trouble locating the picture now but I'll keep trying.

i have not kept with the latest, but I have heard more over time and it seems there were a couple generation loss events. first from tripping a transmission tie line and second from some IBR. the combination of generation loss into a system weakly coupled to main-land Europe created slow inter-area frequency oscillations. These are rarely seen in modern times because systems are usually strong and highly meshed/interconnected. but, when frequency begins to deviate, it traverses entire interconnections very quickly. it's fortunate the Iberian peninsula was the only thing to blackout and this should be seen a victory. It could have easily been far, far worse.

my personal opinion is, not knowing the official statement, that there's a difference in managing IBR generation and modeling generation portfolio costs with IBR and spain learned that difference. mismanagement of IBR (either in real-time or in planning or in commissioning stages (perhaps all three)) was ultimately to blame.
 
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  • #62
I think the view is that small events occurred and there was insufficient stored energy in the system to cope with it, so more rotating machinery (or electronic equivalent ) will be required.
 

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