Spain’s Blackout Reignites Debate Over Nuclear Phase-Out

The Iberian Peninsula experienced a major power outage on April 28 which revived Spanish discussions about ending nuclear reactor operations by 2035 to focus on renewable energy sources. The power outage which affected millions of people caused critics to doubt the dependability of wind and solar power since these sources provided 70% of electricity before the grid suffered a 60% supply loss in a matter of seconds. The 2024 electricity production in Spain consisted of 57% renewable energy and 20% nuclear power while the country aims to reach 81% renewable energy by 2030. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez supported the transition process while asking people to remain patient until the blackout’s origin can be determined. The zero-carbon power source known as nuclear power remains stable yet faces widespread opposition because it generates radioactive waste. Foro Nuclear and other critics maintain that nuclear power plants offer better grid stability than intermittent renewable energy sources. Sánchez stated that the nuclear facilities did not succeed in restoring power supply during the blackout. The power outage demonstrates difficulties in updating power networks to support renewable energy systems because search queries for “nuclear” increased significantly after the incident.