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MMA

Right-wing media use Iberian Peninsula power outage to justify Trump's energy agenda

Power outages happen under many circumstances, but this one became a fixation of conservatives attempting an attack on renewable energy technology

Special ProgramsClimate & Energy

Written by Ilana Berger

Published 05/13/25 MMA

• Right-wing media have attempted to politicize a major power outage that hit Spain, Portugal, and parts of France at the end of April by making it a symbol of the dangers of decarbonization and renewable energy. In reality, the causes of the power outage are still being investigated, and emerging findings suggest it to be a multifaceted problem that implicates the entire energy grid.

Europe has long drawn criticism from the right in the U.S. and abroad for its ambitious net-zero goals. Spain, for example, is a global leader in renewable energy and aims to source 81% of its energy from renewable sources by the end of this decade.

In the U.S., opponents of renewable energy claimed the power outage exposed the irreconcilable shortcomings of wind, solar, and storage batteries and used it to validate President Donald Trump’s hostility toward these technologies and his “drill baby drill” energy agenda of oil and gas expansion. But power outages have also long impacted fossil fuel energy grids, and renewable energy has proved resilient in the face of past extreme weather.

• ## What we know about the power outages: Still not much, but there is speculation

• • On April 28, Spain, Portugal, and parts of France experienced widespread power outages that impacted millions. By the next day, power was almost entirely restored. But the event left people stranded on public transit and in elevators and has been tied to at least seven deaths. It was the largest power outage ever recorded in Spain. AP News, [4/30/25; rtve, 4/29/25; Reuters, 4/28/25]

• • Spain’s electric grid operator Red Eléctrica and Spanish officials say they still do not know what exactly caused this response from the grid, however, a cyberattack has been ruled out.Red Eléctrica has ruled out a cyberattack and an unusual atmospheric event that was first thought to have sparked the power outage. The company’s operations director, Eduardo Prieto, has also said there were no “definitive conclusions” about what happened. Environment Minister Sara Aagesen pointed out, “The system has worked to perfection with a similar demand situation and with a similar energetic mix [in the past], so pointing the finger at renewables when the system has functioned perfectly in the same context doesn’t seem very appropriate.” Wired,[5/2/25; The Guardian, 4/30/25; Scientific American, 4/30/25]

• • The power outage occurred following a large and sudden drop in energy generation, leading to the grid “automatically disconnecting both internally and from the rest of the European grid,” according to Wired.Red Eléctrica found that three separate losses of power generation occurred right before the power outage, and that two losses in southwest Spain likely involved at least one solar plant. But Aagesen said officials are still “seeking to identify the plants” that were compromised. Wired,[5/2/25; Bloomberg, 5/5/25; Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, 5/2/25]

• • The power outage came as European power sources are shifting away from fossil fuels.On April 16, Spain reached a landmark energy achievement when renewable resources met 100% of the country’s electricity needs. A drop in demand for fossil fuels and ambitious renewable energy targets in the European Union have discouraged investment in oil and gas, and Spain has a plan to shutter all of its remaining nuclear plants by 2035. At the time of the power outage, some gas and nuclear plants were online, but “solar accounted for 59% of the country’s electricity supplies, wind nearly 12%.” Carbon Brief, [4/30/25, 1/22/25; Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, 5/2/25; ABC News, 5/9/25; Ember Energy, 1/23/25]

• • Power outages have also long impacted fossil fuel energy grids.The news site Heatmap pointed to 2021 power outages that killed 200 people in Texas to illustrate that “even on renewable-heavy grids, blackouts can still come down to failures of fossil fuel systems.” Heatmap, [4/30/25]

• • In the past, renewable energy has proved resilient in the face of extreme weather. After Hurricanes Fiona and Ian hit Puerto Rico and Florida in 2022, respectively, public utility customers largely lost power. But reporting at the time highlighted homes, businesses, and even an entire community in Florida that were all able to keep the lights on because of solar. Inside Climate News, [9/20/22; CNN, 10/2/22]

• • Climate change will continue to make energy grids less reliable. In summer 2023, heat-related power outages impacted oil refineries in Texas and Louisiana, decreasing energy production and causing higher gas prices. Spectrum News 1, [7/28/23; Forbes, 10/9/23]

• • :{Experts say what’s needed is to better incorporate renewable energy into the mix, rather than abandoning renewables. Bloomberg columnist Javier Blas wrote, “Authorities need to focus on how to better integrate growing renewable production into the grid to strengthen resilience, rather than retreat from and dismantle net-zero generation.” And Reuters pointed out, “The European Union's power grid mostly dates back to the last century and half the lines are over 40 years old. … While global investment in renewables has nearly doubled since 2010, investment in grids has barely changed at around $300 billion a year.”

Additionally, the centralized nature of most traditional energy grids, where energy flows from the grid to customers and provides a consistent energy frequency, doesn’t take advantage of the strengths of renewable energy. Institutions like the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (which President Donald Trump recently targeted with layoffs) are researching technology called grid-forming inverters that can prevent power outages in renewable energy systems, and similar projects are being constructed around the world. Bloomberg, [4/30/25; Reuters, 5/6/25; IEEE Spectrum, 4/13/24; S&P Global, 5/5/25; Reuters, 5/5/25; Colorado Public Radio, 5/5/25]}:

• ## Right-wing media made renewable energy the villain in the incident, radically oversimplifying the obstacles countries like Spain are facing

• • Diana Furchtgott-Roth of the fossil fuel-funded Heartland Institute, noted in The Daily Signal that there are subsidies for renewable energy in Europe and claimed that in the U.S., “Inflation Reduction Act subsidies for wind and solar, now being reconsidered by Congress, are central to the problem” of grid instability.“The president is taking steps to prevent blackouts by cutting subsidies for renewables; keeping existing power plants running; rolling back some environmental rules; and pulling out of net-zero international agreements,” she concluded. The Daily Signal, [5/5/25; Media Matters, 7/31/24]

• • Renewable energy opponent Michael Shellenberger claimed that Spanish leaders “know that it was renewables” but have been “spreading misinformation about it, so to speak,” on Fox Business and dedicated two editions of his newsletter,Public, to the issue.He also noted that “the number of Spaniards that believe in God has declined, and sunlight and solar is sort of the new God.” In his newsletter, Shellenberger claimed that “the Spanish government is lying about the blackout” because the “electrical grid operator blamed renewables.” Fox Business,*The Bottom Line,*[5/1/25; Substack, 4/28/25, 4/30/25; Media Matters, 8/29/23]

• • Comedian-turned-right-wing-influencer Russell Brand amplified Shellenberger’s newsletter, calling it an “excellent analysis on how this situation has been brought about.” Brand also suggested that the power outages were intentional: “This could be because of overreliance on renewables. That’s certainly one perspective — maybe that was part of the plan all along.” Rumble, [4/30/25]

• • On Fox Business, during an interview with Energy Secretary Chris Wright, host Stuart Varney said that “the outages were caused by over-reliance on renewable energy sources, wind and solar,” and Wright responded that it’s too early to be certain but “I think that’s quite likely.” Wright also used the power outages to justify rolling back climate policy in the U.S. After speaking about Trump’s agenda for what Varney called “energy dominance,” such as ramping up liquified natural gas exports, Wright also called Europe’s climate programs “unproductive” and said they are “not changing global greenhouse gas emissions.” He argued, “They’re deindustrializing their nations, they’re impoverishing their citizens, and they’re making their energy more expensive and less reliable. … No one else is going to go down that road.” Fox Business,*Varney & Co.*, [4/30/25]

• • A Wall Street Journal op-ed from two members of the University of the Hesperides’ Peter Huber Center in Spain, which is named for the late Manhattan Institute fellow and climate denier Peter Huber, blamed “energy-transitionist ideologues” who “engineered a vulnerability” and “disregarded warnings grounded in laws of physics.” The Wall Street Journal, [4/30/25; The Federalist Society, accessed 5/9/25; SourceWatch, accessed 5/9/25]

• • On Fox Business,Big Money Showco-host Taylor Riggs said, “Michael Shellenberger’s full takedown of the Spain and Portugal big rolling blackouts that they’re having. He says, ‘Renewables don’t risk blackouts, said the media, but they did and they do. … It’s clear that too little inertia due to the excess solar resulted in a system collapse.’”Fox Business, *The Big Money Show*, [4/29/25; Substack, 4/28/25]

• • Interior Secretary Doug Burgum referenced the European outage in an interview with Fox News’ Harris Faulkner and claimed that the U.S. is in a different place because Trump’s “energy dominance” is preventing “the Biden blackouts and brownouts that were potentially put right on our doorstep here because of the energy policies of the prior administration.”Fox News, *The Faulkner Focus,*[4/29/25]

• • Climate denier Marc Morano told One America News guest host Riley Lewis, “When you have a grid reliant on solar and wind, it is not flexible. In other words, any jolt to the system and it goes down.”Morano also amplified disinformation about power outages that occurred in Texas in 2021, claiming that the state had a similar situation during a winter storm that killed hundreds. One America News, *The Real Story with Riley Lewis*, [4/29/25; DeSmog, accessed 5/9/25; Media Matters, 2/19/21]

• • On Fox Business, Morano claimed that the cause of the power outages was “solar and wind for one simple reason: Spain has been focused on net zero.”Morano continued, “When you have that much solar power, particularly in renewables running, it is not a durable power system, and it can't handle shocks to the system.” Fox Business, *The Bottom Line*, [4/28/25]

• • On his radio show, Fox News host Sean Hannity called the power outages “radicalism on display” because “Spain has one of the highest proportions of renewable energy, providing about 56% of the nation's electricity.”Premiere First, *The Sean Hannity Show,* [4/28/25]

• • :{:{On his show, right-wing influencer Benny Johnson also amplified Shellenberger’s commentar}:y saying, “Overreliance on renewables behind catastrophic blackouts in Spain. … Renewables don't risk blackouts, said the media, but they did and they do. The physics are simple.” [YouTube, The Benny Show,

; Substack, 4/28/25]}:

• • The Daily Mail wrote a misleading article suggesting that renewables were to blame for the power outages and quoting a climate denier as an expert. The Mail proclaimed that “scientists reveal what’s to blame for the Iberian Peninsula’s cascading power outage,” citing in part “heavy reliance on wind and solar,” despite also acknowledging that “the source of the cascading failure might have been a combination of different factors.” The Mail also used energy consultant and climate denier Kathryn Porter as an expert, quoting her saying that “there's a strong chance that the large amount of solar on the system created the conditions for this to be a widespread blackout and made it much worse.”

The Daily Mail, [4/29/25; Twitter/X, 4/21/25]

• ## Right-wing media have a track record of misleadingly blaming power outages on renewable energy when in reality, it has been a source of stability during extreme weather

• • In 2021, Fox News and other right-wing influencers spread the false claim that wind energy was responsible for a major power outage in Texas which contributed to the deaths of over 200 people.After the deadly winter storm, then-Fox News host Tucker Carlson and others blamed “Green New Deal policies.” An image of a frozen-looking wind turbine, which was actually shot in 2014 in Sweden, went viral. It became clear that Texas’ energy infrastructure, including natural gas equipment, was not set up to withstand the cold temperatures. Media Matters, [2/19/21; The Texas Tribune; 1/3/22]

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desmog 920

https://www.desmogblog.com/2020/09/03/youth-climate-lawsuit-portugal-33-european-countries

six young people from Portugal have filed an unprecedented climate change lawsuit against almost all of Europe, targeting 33 European nations for failing to take adequate action on the climate crisis that they say threatens their human rights.

It is the latest in a series of legal actions brought by young people around the world demanding urgent climate action to protect their fundamental rights and safeguard their futures.

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Six young people from Portugal have filed an unprecedented climate change lawsuit against almost all of Europe, targeting 33 European nations for failing to take adequate action on the climate crisis that they say threatens their human rights.

It is the latest in a series of legal actions brought by young people around the world demanding urgent climate action to protect their fundamental rights and safeguard their futures.

The case was filed on September 3 in the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France. It is the first climate case brought directly to this international court. Lawyers for the youth plaintiffs will argue that European governments’ current plans for cutting greenhouse gas emissions are insufficient to prevent catastrophic climate change and therefore constitute human rights violations under the European Convention on Human Rights.

“If successful, the 33 countries would be legally bound, not only to ramp up emissions cuts, but also to tackle overseas contributions to climate change, including those of their multinational companies,” the charity Global Legal Action Network, which is providing legal support for the case, explained in a press release.

These 6 Portuguese young people face a devastating future of spiraling heat extremes

Today, with our support, they've filed an unprecedented climate case against 33 European states demanding deep & urgent cuts to their carbon emissions

To support, visit https://t.co/kdbhkfQqgE pic.twitter.com/hoQL4GRbcq

— Global Legal Action Network (@GLAN_LAW) September 3, 2020

Countries named as defendants in the case include Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Croatia, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Turkey, and Ukraine. These nations make up the European Union plus six other countries that together are the major emitters in Europe.

According to research from Climate Action Tracker, which tracks and analyzes countries’ emissions reduction policies, the policies of these nations do not align with the Paris Agreement goals of limiting global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees C (3.6 degrees F) and pursuing a limit of 1.5 degrees C (2.7 degrees F).

The United Nations Environment Programme refers to this misalignment between what nations of the world promised under the Paris Agreement and what their domestic policies on emissions cuts actually represent as the “emissions gap.” Under current climate policies, the world is on track for more than 3 degrees C (5.4 degrees F) of warming by 2100. An October 2018 report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned of increased risks to human health, livelihoods, food and water security, and other dangerous impacts if warming exceeds 1.5 degrees C.

But top climate scientists like Dr. James Hansen have warned that even warming of 1.5 degrees C is not safe. In a 2013 paper Hansen and colleagues explained that rapid emissions reductions are needed to stabilize the climate and “avoid potentially disastrous impacts on today’s young people, future generations, and nature.” That paper pointed to the “intergenerational injustice” of the climate crisis and suggested that courts could play a key role in remedying that injustice....

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