« This blackout is a rare phenomenon »-Liberation

Monday, April 28, end of morning. In the Iberian Peninsula, the signal lights go out. The elevators no longer go up. In neighboring Portugal too, at the same time, the current is disconnected. The telephone network is lacking. A situation that has something to provoke an immense disorder and deep concernsuntil the middle of the evening. This Tuesday morning, the manager of the Spanish network Ree announced that 99 % of the national electricity supply had been restored in the country. In Portugal, the electrical network is also « Perfectly stabilized » After this massive breakdown, the origin of which remains unknown. Could such an incident arrive in France? Clotilde Levillain, member of the Manager of the Manager of the French electricity transport network, recalls that this phenomenon is « Rarious ».

Could such general failure occur in France?

First of all, it is essential to recall that the blackout which took place yesterday in Spain and Portugal is a extremely rare phenomenon. Very very rare. In very exceptional circumstances and for the same causes, it could happen in France. But each incident is unique, it is still necessary to wait for the fine analyzes of the data of this electrical breakdown and the sequence of events such that occurred to draw an assessment. Because for the moment, in the absence of explanations on the reason (s) of the failure, nothing says that the protective and prevention measures that we currently have would not have been sufficient.

What are the previous ones in France?

In France, partial blackouts occurred in 1978 and 1987 and affected part of the territory. In 1978 first, the phenomenon started from eastern France and was the result of very strong electric currents which crossed France and Germany. The other partial blackout that our country experienced in 1987 was linked to a completely different reason. Because locally, in the west of France, we had recorded very high consumption and electric production groups then disconnected. We had to face a punctual imbalance which had resulted in a fall in tension. The incident then spread to the Paris region. The recovery had been rapid. These two blackouts took place over 40 years ago, which once again demonstrates that they remain very rare. Each type incident strengthens our surveillance devices.

What are the protocols put in place to avoid blackout?

RTE works in three stages. First, we anticipate: protocols are established to be able to monitor and monitor the electrical system in real time and forecastly. Our goal is to be able to identify critical moments, all by constantly managing three physical parameters: the frequency – 50 Hertz permanently -, current and tension. The network must always remain in balance between supply and demand for electricity.

Then, in the event of an incident, our role consists in limiting its magnitude, therefore in circumscribing the affected geographical perimeter to avoid its spread. That is to say that the affected area is immediately isolated to avoid generalization. Thus, we have established « Defense barriers » To be applied in real time to stabilize the network and restore the balance of parameters. These procedures are also common with the rest of the European Union. It may be a question of making load shedding operations, using imports from neighboring countries, or even using production increases. In this part « Defense barrier », We also have automatic actions that can be triggered when the phenomenon is extremely rapid, in the order of the second. These automatisms make it possible to cut consumption when there is a local production deficit or to isolate and disconnect an overloaded electric line to prevent the incident from spreading.

Finally, if despite all these prevention measures, a blackout occurs, as was the case in Spain and Portugal yesterday, the third time is to act to restore the electrical system and realse the consumption by restarting production by the network. The approach is progressive, starting from stabilized areas, the Basque Country and Catalonia in this example. Yesterday, France thus transited electric power to Spain so that it can reconstruct its electrical system, a few hours after it was temporarily disconnected from the European network to avoid propagation.

All these protocols have been in place for over 20 years.

Does the European electricity network work the same way in all countries?

On a daily basis, all European electricity managers are led to monitor three physical parameters – voltage, current and frequency. This management is actually governed by common rules which have been applied by all European transport network managers for decades, whether for everyday life, that is to say for the normal functioning of an electrical system, or for more or less pronounced incident management phases. These different rules are called « network codes », and have a European regulation force. They make it possible to establish homogeneous « defense barriers » between all countries. Spain therefore has the same protective measures as France.