The Day Europe’s Power Grid Came Close to a Massive Blackout
- A sudden split of the European continental grid caused concern
- Less coal and more wind makes it harder to balance network
Photographer: Volkmar Heinz/DPA/Getty Images
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As biting cold caused power demand to surge across western Europe on January 8, the continent’s electricity network came close to a massive blackout.
Europe’s grid, which is usually connected from Lisbon to Istanbul, split into two as the northwest and southeast regions struggled to keep the same frequency. The problem originated in Croatia and led to the equivalent of 200,000 households losing power across Europe. Supply to industrial sites was cut in France and Italy.