Crippling Power Outage in Spain Likely Caused by Generation Loss

Spain’s state-backed operator of electricity transmission lines said that one of Europe’s worst blackouts in years, which knocked out power to much of the Iberian peninsula on Monday, was most likely caused by losses in generation.

A cyberattack has been ruled out as a possible cause, said Red Electrica executive Eduardo Prieto, without providing further details. Spain’s power grid is typically robust and blackouts are very infrequent.