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(Bloomberg) – This is one of the worst conditions that plan for grid operators, but hopefully there will never be an encounter. After one of the worst blackouts in Europe in more than a decade, Spain and Portugal are trying to bring back the power grid operator network and run above the ground.
The initial estimate from the grid operator Red Electric was that it could take six to 10 hours to restore all power supply in Spain. According to the grid data, till Monday evening, it seemed optimistic – at the time of Madrid at 9 o’clock, there was a demand of 17.3 gW on the grid, the amount seen just before the blackout was two -thirds of the amount.
It is not clear what causes the initial disruption, or why it is dramatically a wide failure cascade. But it is noteworthy that Spain has been one of the leaders in rolling out air and solar generations, at a time when governments and grid operators across Europe are struggling with questions about flexibility because the renewable power takes a large part of the energy mixture of the field.
When there is failure on the entire grid, a complex procedure called “Black Start” is required gradually to restore the network. Small, often diesel, generators are used to start older people, in a process that creates a “island” of power that gradually connects together on the main transmission network to restore the grid.
European rules require grids, which regularly test their black-start capacity, so operators must have a clear plan to follow. But the process is laborious and complex.
“These electric islands need to be synchronized simultaneously simultaneously,” said in a post on LinkedIn, Managing Director of UK Network Services, Managing Director Simon Galagher. “Not simple and again, takes time and has to be very controlled.”
Essential services like hospitals will have their own on-site back-up generation, usually diesel engines and fuel stores. Other commercial institutions like data centers also pay emergency back up generators and batteries to secure supply.
Read: Data Center and Mill have better backup than Heathro since 1929
So far, the only information due to the crisis was a comment from the grid operator Red Electric that the blackout was a result of “oscillation”, which suggests a disruption in the frequency or voltage of the grid – both important factors to maintain stability. The frequency, which normally remains very stable around 50 Hz, is the heartbeat of the grid.
Frequency Monitoring Specialist Gridradar said that he identified a rapid movement in frequency in Spain after noon – just before the blackout hit. Such oscillations can lead to chain reactions that eventually lead to a blackout.
It is not known what is the cause of initial disturbances. But it is possible that it was extended from a large part of the energy generated by renewable sources at that time. To maintain the correct frequency and maintain stability, the grid requires kinetic energy, which is formed by the spinning turbines of thermal plants. This kinetic energy cannot be supplied by wind turbines or solar panels, so Spain and Portugal require coal, gas or hydro plants to be connected.
Another point of vulnerability for Spain is that it lacks interrelations, meaning that it does not have many huge power cables that connect with neighboring countries. These lines that allow imports and exports are seen as a way to add energy security within Europe.
For Spain, this means that if it has a lot of power for example, then there are only a few routes out of its network. If it does not have enough supply, there are not many options for neighbors to step and help.
Grid collapse is extremely rare and operators usually do whatever they can do to avoid them, including applying rolling power cuts to protect the system.
The last time Europe had a blackout on this scale, in 2006 when there was an outage affecting 15 million houses in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Spain.
Since then, renewable energy has been rapidly created in the entire region, causing more challenges for grid operators, when it is to balance the sun or air heavy swings.
In February 2021, Blackout had a major contribution in Texas during an extreme winter storm. The cold weather and ice forced gas plants to travel to the offline N Masss, leading to the frequency dip and other power plants to travel offline, resulting in cascading failures.
-Naren S. With help from Malik.
Such more stories are available on bloomberg.com
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