The legal battle between Iberdrola and Redeia, the parent company of Red Eléctrica (REE), the system operator, over the massive blackout of April 28th of last year, has been reignited. A Madrid court has accepted the complaint for unfair competition filed by the electricity company chaired by Ignacio Sánchez Galán, alleging that Redeia, although not explicitly naming it, held it responsible for the blackout, according to reports. El País-Cinco Días And ARA has been able to confirm this.

In an increasingly unstable world, the First Vice-President and Commissioner for Competition of the European Commission, Teresa Ribera, is clear on the matter: "We are shaken by the feeling that the world order is faltering, and that the use of energy and raw materials and the dependencies between different powers are becoming a geopolitical weapon," she stated in Barcelona, ​​at an event organized by the Foundation for Energy and Environmental Sustainability (Funseam). But she was quick to point the way forward: "We must be aware of the progress we have made. The future is not written, but we must not let ourselves be swayed by the noise and pessimism." For the former Vice-President and Socialist Minister, the capacity for reaction of the different member states is key, especially given the major shock that Europe experienced with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which highlighted the excessive energy dependence and the response of severing the supply chain. While in 2022, 45% of the natural gas consumed by Europe came from Russia, this figure has now fallen to 12%.

For several years now, the nuclear shutdown has lost momentum, with a war in Ukraine upsetting the order of priorities, opening the door to extending the life of this energy and leaving behind the widespread commitment to speeding up the energy transition. In this context, the electricity companies, owners of the nuclear power plants, are calling for a rethinking of the roadmap they agreed upon, which provided for a shutdown schedule between 2027 and 2035.

Since the massive blackout on April 28, which left the entire Iberian Peninsula without electricity, the system operator, Red Eléctrica, has been operating in "boost mode." This mode consists, broadly speaking, of more than twenty combined cycle (gas-fired) plants remaining on idle. They do not generate electricity, but are available to be activated at any time, especially if demand soars and renewables cannot meet it, or if, once again, technical problems are detected in the system.

This Monday's massive blackout has put Beatriz Corredor (Madrid, 1968), president of Red Eléctrica, in the spotlight. Social media has been filled with calls for her resignation and messages questioning her suitability due to the fact that, when Sánchez's administration appointed her in 2020, she had no prior experience in the energy sector. Her professional career is related to the real estate sector, and in statements on a specialized radio program before making the leap to the listed company, she declared herself "in love" with Gaudí's Casa Batlló and a lover of New York City. Corredor has been a registered property registrar since 1993 and was Minister of Housing under José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero from 2008 to 2010, at the height of the real estate bubble.

Red Eléctrica Española (REE), of the Redeia group, is the company that we call the system operator, and which has been singled out by Monday's massive blackoutWithin the Spanish coalition government itself, Sumar has asked that the State have a greater influence in the company, but in fact already controls it. It is the largest shareholder, with 20% of the capital (the remaining shareholders hold no more than 5%), through the State Industrial Participation Company (SEPI). The president of Red Eléctrica is former Socialist minister Beatriz Corredor.