# EU pushes to end Iberia's electrical island after the 2025 blackout
> The Bay of Biscay link will double France-Spain capacity to 5GW; the EU Grids Package and the ENTSO-E blackout report frame interconnection as a security priority

**Meta:** type: story · date: 2026-03-20 · heads: O jogo longo, Quem decide · 9 takes · 3 lenses · 5 regions

## Summary

The 20 March 2026 [ENTSO-E final report](/pt/n/iberian-blackout-final-report-2026) on the 28
April 2025 [Spain](/pt/entity/spain)-Portugal blackout, Europe's worst in 20 years, blamed voltage
and reactive-power control failures, not [Renewables](/pt/entity/renewables), and underscored the peninsula's
status as a near-island with thin links to the rest of the [European grid](/pt/entity/eu-grid). The
EU's response runs through the [Commission](/pt/entity/european-union)'s Grids Package (faster
permitting, stronger interconnection targets) and the long-delayed Bay of Biscay
[France](/pt/entity/france)-Spain link, which will double cross-border capacity to 5GW. The European
Investment Bank added €1.6bn to that project in June 2025 atop a €578m EU grant. Iberia
still falls short of the EU's 15% interconnection target.

## By the numbers

- 28 April 2025, Iberian blackout; worst in Europe in two decades.
- 20 March 2026, ENTSO-E expert-panel final report published.
- 5 GW, France-Spain capacity once the Bay of Biscay link completes (a doubling).
- €1.6bn, additional EIB financing committed June 2025 (atop a €578m EU grant).
- 15%, EU interconnection target Iberia still misses.

## Why it matters

The blackout reframed interconnection from a market-efficiency nicety to a security and
reliability imperative. A weakly-linked Iberia is more prone to cascading failure; the EU is
betting permitting reform and cross-border lines can harden a grid leaning on variable
renewables.

## What to watch

- Bay of Biscay link commissioning timeline and any further delays.
- Whether the Grids Package accelerates permitting in practice.
- Spanish grid-code changes on voltage/reactive-power control post-report.

## Regional takes (batched by bias / lens)

### unlabelled
- **ENTSO-E** (European Union, en) — ENTSO-E's 20 March 2026 expert-panel final report on the 28 April 2025 Iberian blackout: attributes it to voltage and reactive-power control failures and oscillations, not renewables, and implicitly to the peninsula's weak interconnection.
  Source: https://www.entsoe.eu/news/2026/03/20/entso-e-publishes-expert-panel-final-report-on-28-april-2025-blackout-in-spain-and-portugal/
- **European Commission (Grids Package)** (European Union, en) — The Commission's European Grids Package: faster permitting and stronger cross-border interconnections, with electricity-interconnection targets that Iberia conspicuously misses.
  Source: https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/infrastructure/european-grids_en
- **SolarPower Europe** (European Union, en) — 
  Source: https://www.solarpowereurope.org/press-releases/joint-statement-entso-e-final-report-on-iberian-blackout
- **Enlit World** (European Union, en) — 
  Source: https://www.enlit.world/library/final-entso-e-reports-sheds-light-on-multiple-factors-that-caused-iberian-blackout
- **Clean Energy Wire** (Germany, en) — 
  Source: https://www.cleanenergywire.org/factsheets/qa-eu-grid-package
- **Balkan Green Energy News** (Southeast Europe, en) — 
  Source: https://balkangreenenergynews.com/eu-presents-european-grids-package-faster-permitting-stronger-interconnections-lower-energy-bills/
- **RatedPower** (Spain, en) — 
  Source: https://ratedpower.com/blog/grid-interconnection-France-UK/

### energy-transition think tank
- **Ember** (United Kingdom, en) — Argues underbuilt interconnection costs Europe money and resilience; quantifies the financing gap and makes the case that links like the Bay of Biscay pay back through avoided curtailment and price spreads.
  > "Scaling electricity interconnection is money on the line for Europe's energy future."
  Source: https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/money-on-the-line-scaling-electricity-interconnection-for-europes-energy-future/

### renewables industry
- **WindEurope** (European Union, en) — Stresses the ENTSO-E finding that voltage control, not renewable penetration, caused the blackout, pushing back against narratives blaming solar and wind for Iberia's instability.
  > "The report puts the spotlight on grid resilience and voltage control, not on renewables."
  Source: https://windeurope.org/news/iberian-blackout-entso-e-report-puts-spotlight-on-grid-resilience-and-voltage-control-not-on-renewables/

## Across the graph
- Related: [[iberian-blackout-final-report-2026]], [[hvdc-transmission-buildout-2026]], [[china-grid-uhv-buildout-2026]]
- Entities: EU Grid, Electricity, Spain, France, European Union

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Canonical: https://rbtfl.xyz/pt/n/eu-grid-iberia-interconnection-2026