French President Emmanuel Macron has attributed the major blackout that hit the Iberian Peninsula in April 2025 to Spain’s heavy dependence on renewable energy sources, rather than to insufficient cross-border electricity interconnections with France.
In an interview at the Élysée Palace with EL PAÍS and six other European newspapers, published 10 February, Macron was questioned about France’s longstanding reluctance to expand high-voltage links across the Pyrenees, which Spain and Portugal have long advocated to better integrate their abundant solar and wind power into the European grid.
Macron dismissed the interconnections debate as misplaced.
“The issue in Spain is a false debate. Its problem is that it has a 100 per cent renewable energy model that its own domestic grid cannot support,” the French President said.
“The blackout in Spain has nothing to do with interconnections, but with the fact that no system, at least with current technology, can sustain such dependence on renewable energy. Stability in the energy mix is needed because otherwise, shocks that are too large occur. But it’s not just about interconnections. Grids are needed.”
The comments come ahead of an informal EU leaders’ meeting on February 12, where energy security, grid resilience, and implementation of the Draghi report’s recommendations for a stronger energy union are expected to feature prominently.
Last year’s blackout of April 25 – one of Europe’s most severe in recent decades – affected tens of millions across Spain, Portugal, and parts of southern France, lasting several hours in many areas.
Spanish grid operator Red Eléctrica de España (REE) initially cited a sudden supply imbalance that triggered protective disconnections, including on the France-Spain interconnectors.
Critics in Madrid and Lisbon have repeatedly blamed France for keeping the Iberian Peninsula relatively isolated as an “energy island” by delaying new infrastructure projects.
Though experts and internal conversations point overwhelmingly in the direction of the excessive use of “green energy” and the lack of required infrastructure for it.
France, which relies heavily on nuclear power for baseload stability, has cited environmental concerns over new lines through the Pyrenees and questions about the economic case for large-scale imports of variable renewables.
Macron’s framing shifts responsibility toward domestic grid reinforcement and a balanced energy mix, implicitly defending France’s cautious approach.
The remarks have already sparked discussion on social media and in energy circles, with some viewing them as a pointed critique of aggressive renewable targets without adequate backup or infrastructure upgrades.
France’s nuclear power supplies about 65-70 per cent of the country’s electricity (around 365-375 TWh expected in 2025-2026), providing high, stable baseload energy with near-constant output.
It delivers low CO2 emissions: France’s grid emits around 85 g CO₂/kWh, while the global average is around 438 g, in large extent thanks to nuclear power’s lifecycle emissions of only around 4 g CO₂/kWh.
Nuclear keeps electricity cheap and reliable: France enjoys low generation costs, enabling it to be the world’s top electricity exporter (€3+ billion/year) and maintain stable prices even during crises.
The head of the International Energy Agency has called Germany’s decision to abandon its nuclear power plants a “historic mistake”. https://t.co/C8ouoHXg2H
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) February 5, 2026
