It still seems like only yesterday that the frenetic noise of our cities suddenly fell silent. That April 28th is etched in our memories, not only because we were plunged into darkness, but because of the climate of uncertainty which was generated right after. It was a strange night where, paradoxically, losing the digital connection allowed us reconnect with people, sharing candles and impromptu dinners with the neighbors while we waited for the power to come back on.
However, while we citizens were supporting each other, things were starting to get complicated in the offices of the electricity companies. completely false storiesThose responsible for ensuring supplies not only failed in their task, but also took advantage of the vulnerability of the moment to create a smokescreen and promote convenient narratives that would benefit their own economic interests, trying to pass off hoaxes that today, thanks to technical reports, we can debunk one by one.
The lie of blaming renewables
One of the most repeated stories was that the system collapsed because there was too much renewable energy on the network. This is categorically false. The report by the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) made it clear that the problem was not the generation technology, but a systemic failure in stress managementBasically, the protection systems, which are in the hands of the usual power companies, failed to stop a chain reaction.
To make it clearer, while we were in the dark, countries like Germany or Greece were functioning with levels of wind and photovoltaic much higher than ours and they didn't even flicker. This trick of blaming renewables is the old oligopoly manual to protect their fossil and nuclear assets, something we have already seen happen in past blackouts in Australia or Texas.
The burden of nuclear energy and gas
It was also widely said that without nuclear power the blackout would have been worse, but the reality is that Nuclear power was a burdenOn the day of the incident, much of the nuclear fleet was operational and did not help stabilize the grid; on the contrary, it hindered the recovery. There are plants like Almaraz and Ascó that even have sanctioning files for failing to fulfill its obligation to stabilize the system despite being paid to do so.
In addition, nuclear energy is extremely rigid. Due to the phenomenon known as Xenon poison And due to thermal stress, if a power plant shuts down for safety reasons, it takes days to restart. Meanwhile, hydroelectric power and other renewables got the country up and running in a matter of hours. The nuclear tests took a week in normalizing, demonstrating that they make the system much less resilient.
Regarding gas, the story is similar. They try to sell us the idea that gas saved our lives, but 16 gas plants belonging to the major energy companies... They failed in their duty of control of tension. The most outrageous thing is that now they are asking capacity paymentsThat is, money just for existing, while they keep plants running "just in case", which drives up our bills and CO2 emissions.
Disinformation and conspiracy theories
The electrical chaos was the perfect breeding ground for them to circulate conspiracy theories on social media. From fake Russian cyberattacks wrongly attributed to Ursula von der Leyen, to the story of an imaginary fire between Perpignan and Narbonne. There were even those who claimed that the government already knew what would happen because it had bought Type C diesel, when in reality that contract began months after the blackout.
- Fake videos: Images of the demolition of thermal power plants were made viral, passing them off as nuclear power plants.
- Coordinated attacks: The so-called "Operation Matryoshka" used bots to spread fake articles impersonating media outlets such as The Independent.
- Social panic: Rumors circulated about deaths in hospitals in Toledo and Albacete or massive looting in Madrid and Barcelona that never happened.
There was also an attempt to suggest that the blackout was a digital disconnection test predicted by The Simpsons, or that Morocco had the upper hand because the attack was only against the EU. The truth is that Morocco simply disconnected its network from the Iberian Peninsula to prevent the problem from spreading to its territory, a standard technical measure.
Common myths about clean energy
Beyond the blackout, there are deeply ingrained prejudices about renewables that need to be addressed. For example, it is said that Solar panels don't work at nightBut that ignores the advances in energy storage. Producing energy during the day and storing it in batteries allows light to be available 24 hours a day. Likewise, the myth that solar panels are highly polluting is false: in just two years they have already generated more energy than it cost to manufacture them and they are 95% recyclable.
Regarding wind turbines, it's common to hear that they are a massacre for birds, but the accident rate is minimal compared to collisions with cars or trains. Furthermore, it's said that they take up space in the countryside, when in reality They are perfectly compatible with agriculture and livestock farming, since the base of the tower occupies an insignificant space.
Finally, the idea that renewables are expensive is an anachronism. Today they are the cheapest energy sourcewith brutal price drops in the last decade. In fact, recent studies show that it is entirely possible to abandon fossil fuels and nuclear power by 2040, reducing energy demand by 39% and covering the rest with a mix of renewable sources and storage.
The lesson from that night is that we don't depend on gas giants or uranium, but we need an energy model sufficient, efficient and decentralized that it ceases to be the business of a few and becomes a right for all, based on technology and intelligent demand management.