Millions hit by blackout after failure of Continental electricity grid
Pastor Dale Morgan
Millions hit by blackout after failure of Continental electricity grid*
By Henry Samuel, in Paris
Last Updated: 1:16am GMT 06/11/2006
Western Europe came perilously close to a total electricity blackout on
Saturday night after a power failure in Germany plunged five million
French homes into darkness.
The cut, which affected 10 percent of France's population, was described
as the its worst in 30 years. Hundreds of thousands of homes across
Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Spain were also affected.
The incident began at 10.13pm and lasted an hour but its cause was still
unclear yesterday. Germany electricity supplier RWE initially suggested
a surge in demand due to a cold snap caused "overheating" in two 400,000
volt lines.
However, E.On, another supplier, later said the failure could have been
because of its decision to shut down two high-tension lines over the
river Ems to allow a cruise liner to pass safely under. Demand in France
was also higher than usual. The failure sparked a "house of cards"
effect, said Pierre Bornard, a board member of RTE, a subsidiary of
Electricité de France.
"We were not very far off a complete European 'blackout'," he said,
adding that automatic safety systems instantly cut off a share of
consumption. "This is the only way to avoid complete collapse." The
systems are designed to ensure that high-priority zones, like hospitals,
are not affected.
In France, central and eastern Paris were hit first with cuts spreading
to 15 regions. Large parts of western Germany, Belgium, Spain and Italy
were affected.
Romano Prodi, Italy's president, said the incident showed that Europe
must strengthen its co-ordination of power supplies. He said: "We depend
on each other with being able to help each other, without a central
authority."
A spokesman for Ofgem, the British energy regulator, said yesterday that
there were "well-rehearsed plans in place" to prevent power cuts in
Britain.