Pedro Sánchez: "The Government is working to restore the electricity supply to normal as soon as possible"

Moncloa Palace, Madrid

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, during his appearance to report on the situation following the power outage (Pool Moncloa / Fernando Calvo)

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, appeared at the Moncloa Palace to address the electricity crisis that has triggered the widespread interruption of supply throughout the Iberian Peninsula and some areas in the south of France.

After participating in an initial meeting of the National Security Council, Pedro Sánchez said that the government's "priority" is now "to work so that, as soon as possible, we return to normality" and "get electricity back in our homes"; at the same time he said that "Spain has mechanisms in place to deal with this type of situation".

He reported that, "for the moment, supply has already been re-established in several territories in the north and south of the peninsula thanks to interconnections with France and Morocco". Also, "combined cycle and hydroelectric plants across the country are being reactivated, something that should allow us to restore the supply throughout Spain soon".

Emergency Level 3 in Andalusia, Extremadura and Madrid

Three Autonomous Communities have formally requested civil protection emergency level 3: Andalusia, Extremadura and Madrid, which means that the government will take over the management of these territories, and will do the same with other Autonomous Communities that also demand it.

As for the causes, the president explained that "we still do not have conclusive information on the reasons for this outage," so he asked the public "to get information through official channels". It is better not to speculate," he said, "we will find out the causes, we do not rule out any hypothesis, but now we must focus on the most important thing, which is to get electricity back in our homes".

He stressed that, since the beginning of the outage, all the competent ministries have adopted measures to address the situation and that the State Security Forces have increased their presence and surveillance on the streets and roads, so that, for the moment, there are no civil protection issues and "there are no security problems", he underlined.

In addition, "our hospital system is functioning well" thanks to the generators in the healthcare centres that have a long autonomy period" and "home services are being provided to people with special needs.

Port traffic is running smoothly and air traffic has not been affected either, although a decision has been taken to reduce air traffic in order to ensure its safety and smooth operation. As for rail traffic, "it is at a standstill for safety reasons" - medium and long-distance journeys will not be resumed today - "but teams are working to try to restore local services as soon as possible".

On the economic front, payment systems, both wholesale and retail, are functioning normally, as is electronic banking.

The president assured that the government is also in communication with His Majesty the King, with parliamentary groups, with its European partners, with EU institutions and with NATO.

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, during his appearance | Pool Moncloa / Fernando Calvo

Recommendations to the public

In view of this situation, Sánchez has appealed to the public to "collaborate with all the authorities and act responsibly and with civility" and has offered a series of recommendations. Firstly, "to minimise travel". Secondly, to follow only official information "and not to disseminate information of dubious origin", and thirdly, to make "responsible use of mobile phones", making only short calls and using the 112 emergency number only when really necessary.

Finally, he announced that the National Security Council would meet again at 19:00 to assess the situation and take further measures, if necessary.

In addition to the President of the Government of Spain, members of this body include the First Vice-President of the Government of Spain and Minister for Treasury, María Jesús Montero; the Third Vice-President of the Government of Spain and Minister for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, Sara Aagesen; the Minister for Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares; the Minister for the Presidency, Justice and Parliamentary Relations, Félix Bolaños; the Minister for Defence, Margarita Robles; the Minister for Home Affairs, Fernando Grande-Marlaska; the Minister for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente; the Minister for Industry and Tourism, Jordi Hereu; the Minister for Health, Mónica García; the Minister for Digital Transformation and Public Function, Óscar López; the Chief of Defence Staff, Admiral Teodoro López Calderón; the director of the CNI, Esperanza Casteleiro, and the director of the Department of National Security, Loreto Gutiérrez.

Non official translation