Massive European power outage blamed on solar plant breakdowns

A massive power outage hit Spain and Portugal, affecting millions. The blackout was likely caused by two solar plant failures, creating instability in the Spanish power grid. By Tuesday morning, power was mostly restored, with over 99% of energy demand back online.

The outage stranded over 35,000 passengers, with transportation systems failing. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez remarked, "We have never had a complete collapse of the system." The economic cost is estimated between $2.5 billion and over $5 billion.

Authorities are investigating the incident and inspecting environmental conditions, with Spain's meteorological agency finding no unusual weather phenomena.