Recently, an unexpected blackout swept across Spain, Portugal, and neighboring countries, leaving millions of people and entire cities in darkness, though not in panic. Just a few years earlier, blackouts were routine in Ukraine, with entire regions regularly plunged into darkness due to Russia’s targeted strikes on the power grid. Back in February 2021, Texas (USA) suffered from catastrophic outages caused by extreme cold and weather conditions. At the same time, South Africa was grappling with a chronic energy crisis, with its residents enduring hours-long rolling blackouts on a daily basis. In this article, we review the largest blackouts of recent years, their causes and consequences, and consider whether countries and citizens can protect themselves from such events.
Europe
On April 28, 2025, Europe faced one of the largest blackouts in its modern history. Around 12:30 p.m., a cascading failure hit the Iberian Peninsula: Spain and Portugal were simultaneously plunged into darkness, with outages also affecting Andorra, parts of France (especially the south, Occitania), and even Belgium.
Chaos erupted in cities: traffic lights went out, metro and rail services halted, and mobile networks failed. Airports in Madrid and Lisbon shut down, with flights delayed or canceled, stranding thousands of passengers in terminals. Hospitals switched to backup generators, performing only essential procedures.
Within minutes, electricity demand in Spain plummeted from ~25 GW to 12 GW. Not only was this half the country’s usual consumption, but such a sharp drop also destabilized the grid’s processes.
Power supply was gradually restored within a day, with most loads reconnected by the next morning. A similar incident occurred in July 2021, when a wildfire damaged lines in southern France. This disconnected Spain and Portugal from the European grid. A full blackout was avoided by emergency load shedding of over 3.5 GW in Spain and ~0.68 GW in Portugal, thanks to automated systems.
In 2025, however, the situation worsened: the Iberian system collapsed entirely, forcing operators to perform a complex “black start”—a step-by-step grid restart from zero. Possible causes include both technical faults and unusual natural phenomena. Some experts pointed to a rare occurrence called “induced atmospheric vibration,” where rapid temperature shifts cause oscillations in transmission lines, potentially disrupting grid synchronization.
Final conclusions are pending investigations by major operators, including Spain’s Endesa and Iberdrola, and Portugal’s REN. Specialists also suspect the blackout may have been triggered by the disconnection of a key transmission line between France and Spain. According to European energy officials, the Iberian grid suddenly detached from the continental network, and local generation couldn’t meet demand, leading to frequency drops and a cascade of shutdowns.
Notably, even during the 2022–2023 winter energy crisis caused by gas shortages, Europe avoided such large-scale failures. Thanks to coordinated actions by grid operators and energy-saving measures, the EU saw no widespread outages. However, the 2025 incident revealed vulnerabilities even in highly integrated networks.
While ENTSO-E protocols typically localize disruptions, under certain conditions a failure can still impact multiple countries.
Ukraine
In Ukraine, the term “blackout” took on a tragic meaning during the full-scale war. Beginning in October 2022, Russia launched a massive campaign of strikes against energy infrastructure, attempting to plunge Ukraine into cold and darkness. Hundreds of missile attacks damaged or destroyed over half of Ukraine’s generating capacity. The situation was most dire in winter: from November 2022 to January 2023, millions of Ukrainians endured scheduled power outages of 8–12 hours a day.
Electricity was distributed according to rolling schedules, with priority given to critical infrastructure such as hospitals, water facilities, and communication networks. At peak moments, consumption had to be limited by 30–40% to maintain system balance. The power grid repeatedly teetered on the brink of collapse.
According to government data, on November 23, 2022, after another wave of attacks, Ukraine experienced the largest blackout in its history: all nuclear and most thermal power plants were shut down, and the country functioned as an isolated energy island for several hours.
Thanks to emergency measures—electricity imports from the EU, activation of backup facilities, and rapid repair work—power was gradually restored within 24–48 hours.
The Ukrainian government and energy companies mobilized swiftly to mitigate the consequences. Thousands of “points of resilience” were set up nationwide—temporary centers equipped with generators where people could warm up, charge phones, and access communication. Energy workers restored networks around the clock, often under fire.
By spring 2023, the most critical damage had been repaired, and electricity imports from Europe helped stabilize the situation.
However, even by early summer 2024, millions still faced rolling blackouts, as virtually all major thermal and hydroelectric plants had been damaged by Russian attacks.
USA
One of the most high-profile energy catastrophes in developed countries occurred during the 2021 Texas winter storm. In February 2021, Arctic conditions hit Texas, a state known for its hot summers. Temperatures fell to -10°C and below, freezing unprotected equipment at power plants and gas pipelines.
On February 15, Texas’s grid was near collapse: up to 48% of generating capacity was lost due to ice, disabling wind turbines, gas plants, and coal-fired units. Meanwhile, demand spiked as people turned on heaters. Grid operator ERCOT declared a maximum emergency level and began rolling blackouts. Millions of Texans were left without heat or electricity—approximately 4.5 million households lost power during peak cold. In some areas, outages lasted 3–4 days, causing a humanitarian crisis.
People warmed themselves in cars or burned furniture; hospitals with generators were overwhelmed. Tragically, at least 246 people died (official count), mainly from hypothermia, carbon monoxide poisoning from vehicles or generators, or fires from candles. The economic damage exceeded $195 billion. The primary cause was poor winterization.
Unlike northern states, Texas power plants lacked pipe heating systems and anti-freeze protections for wind turbines. Moreover, Texas’s grid is isolated from the rest of the U.S., with minimal interconnection, meaning ERCOT couldn’t import power from neighboring regions. As load rose and generation fell, the grid lost stability. Protective systems responded correctly by disconnecting loads to prevent a complete collapse—but the scale of outages was unprecedented. Electricity was gradually restored over 2–4 days (the emergency ended on February 19), but for many families, it was a struggle for survival.
The Texas crisis was a harsh lesson. New regulations were introduced, requiring utilities to prepare for winter (“winterization”) and maintain capacity reserves. However, experts warn that without broader reforms, such as integrating Texas with the national grid, the risk of recurrence remains.
Climate change makes extreme weather more frequent, and the Texas experience served as a warning: even the most advanced grids are vulnerable if they ignore new realities.
South Africa
Unlike sudden blackouts in Europe or the U.S., South Africa faces a prolonged energy crisis where load-shedding is a daily norm. During 2022–2023, the country experienced its worst-ever rolling blackouts. Almost daily, power is cut off in different regions for 2 to 8+ hours, depending on the “Stage” level announced by the national utility Eskom.
In 2022 alone, electricity was off for over 200 days, and the situation worsened in 2023. The roots of this crisis go back years. South Africa suffers from a severe capacity shortage: aging coal plants frequently fail, and new units are delayed. In early 2023, the government declared a state of disaster in the energy sector to accelerate repairs and procurement. Still, demand exceeds supply by 4–6 GW.
For South Africans, blackouts are a harsh reality. GDP decline in 2023 was directly tied to energy shortfalls. Small businesses suffered downtime; large companies spent billions on fuel for generators. Households that can afford it install solar panels and batteries to reduce reliance on the grid.
Most, however, plan their lives around outages: cooking in advance, stocking up on flashlights, generators, or gas stoves. The crisis continues, and South Africa remains one of the world’s most energy-unstable major economies.
Pakistan
On January 23, 2023, around 7:30 a.m., Pakistan’s national grid (serving 220 million people) suffered a major failure. According to the energy minister, a sudden voltage spike in the south triggered a system-wide frequency collapse. Protection systems shut down generation, causing a chain reaction that left nearly the entire country without power—from Islamabad to Karachi.
It was the second nationwide blackout in three months (the previous one occurred in October 2022). The January outage was due to load management errors. To save fuel during the night, some power stations had been shut down. In the morning, they were reactivated, but voltage and frequency mismatches occurred near Jamshoro and Dadu, destabilizing the grid.
Fortunately, there was no major technical damage: the government reported power was partially restored the same day, with most areas reconnected within ~12 hours. However, the blackout paralyzed the economy. One day of downtime cost Pakistan tens of millions of dollars. Manufacturing halted, communications failed, hundreds were trapped in elevators, and hospitals relied on generators.
The crisis unfolded against a broader backdrop of fuel shortages and economic distress. Pakistan lacks sufficient gas (which supplies a third of its electricity) and has limited resources to import oil, prompting enforced nighttime energy savings.
Taking reliable power for granted is risky—even in 2025. Power disruptions can arise from many causes, but the most serious problems often stem from a combination of factors. Still, the ability to analyze past experiences and draw lessons allows countries and citizens to reduce risks and prepare for unpredictable scenarios.
It is important not only to respond to problems but also to develop strategies for maintaining energy stability. This includes improving infrastructure, better integration of energy systems, and preparing individuals and businesses for extreme situations.
