On April 28, 2025, a massive blackout swept across Spain, Portugal, and parts of France, plunging millions into darkness, grounding flights, stranding commuters, and disrupting hospitals. The outage, one of the worst in modern European history, left 55 million people without power, communication, or internet, with some areas facing delays of up to a week for full restoration. While Spanish authorities initially called it a “rare atmospheric phenomenon,” mounting evidence points to a more systemic culprit: Europe’s overreliance on intermittent “green” energy sources like solar and wind, which failed to deliver when demand surged. This crisis is a stark lesson for rural Americans, who have been sold a glossy vision of “sustainable” energy—solar arrays sprawling across farmland and wind turbines dotting the horizon—that cannot reliably meet their needs.
🚨BREAKING — It’s now official: the massive blackout in Spain, Portugal, and France was caused by “green energy.”
Spain’s grid operator admitted renewables triggered the collapse.
The Green New Deal is Europe’s economic death sentence. https://t.co/UtuchVyigH
— Dr. Simon Goddek (@goddeketal) April 29, 2025
Europe’s Green Gamble and Its Consequences
Europe’s energy policy has been shaped by ambitious net-zero goals, with billions funneled into subsidies for renewable energy companies while phasing out ‘fossil fuels’ and, critically, nuclear power. Spain, a poster child for this transition, celebrated a milestone just six days before the blackout: its grid ran on 100% renewable energy for a day. Yet, this triumph masked a fatal flaw. Renewable sources like solar and wind are intermittent, producing power only when the sun shines or the wind blows. Without sufficient backup or grid upgrades, this creates a brittle system vulnerable to collapse.
The April blackout exposed this fragility. A sudden 15-gigawatt drop—60% of Spain’s electricity demand—occurred when two solar-heavy regions went offline, likely due to low inertia in the grid. Inertia, the stabilizing force provided by heavy, spinning turbines in nuclear or gas plants, is essential for managing grid disturbances. Solar and wind, reliant on lightweight inverters, lack this stabilizing capacity. Experts like Michael Shellenberger and energy consultant Kathryn Porter have long warned that over-dependence on renewables, coupled with the closure of nuclear plants, leaves grids prone to such failures. Spain’s grid operator, Red Eléctrica, later admitted renewables played a role in the collapse, confirming what critics had predicted.
Renewables don't risk blackouts, said the media. But they did and they do. The physics are simple. And now, as blackouts in Spain strand people in elevators, jam traffic, and ground flights, it's clear that too little "inertia" due to excess solar resulted in system collapse. pic.twitter.com/FbuX1oSVcs
— Michael Shellenberger (@shellenberger) April 28, 2025
The human cost was immediate. People were trapped in elevators, traffic jammed, and hospitals scrambled to maintain critical operations. Energy prices, already soaring due to Europe’s green policies, have further strained households, with many countries scrapping energy taxes to quell public anger. The blackout wasn’t an isolated incident but a symptom of a broader energy crisis, exacerbated by Europe’s failure to invest in grid stability while prioritizing ideological goals over practical realities.
The False Promises Sold to Rural America
Rural Americans should take note. The same “green” narrative that seduced European policymakers is being pitched across the United States, particularly in rural communities. Solar farms and wind turbines are touted as sustainable, cost-effective solutions that will power homes while saving the planet. Developers promise jobs, tax revenue, and energy independence, often leasing vast tracts of farmland for these projects. But Europe’s experience reveals the cracks in this vision.
First, renewables are not reliable enough to meet consistent energy demands, especially in rural areas where infrastructure is already stretched thin. Unlike urban centers with access to diverse power sources, rural communities often rely on single grids. A sudden drop in solar or wind output—due to weather, time of day, or technical failure—can leave entire towns without power. Europe’s blackout showed how quickly this can spiral into chaos.
Second, the infrastructure required to make renewables viable is often overlooked. Massive battery storage systems, high-capacity transmission lines, and backup generators are needed to compensate for intermittency, but these are costly and complex. Europe’s failure to upgrade its grid left it vulnerable, and rural America, with its limited resources, faces similar risks. Installing solar arrays or wind turbines without these investments is like building a house without a foundation.
Third, the economic promises of green energy often fall short. While developers dangle job creation, most jobs are temporary, tied to construction rather than long-term maintenance. Meanwhile, farmland converted to solar fields is lost to agriculture, threatening local economies and food security. The environmental impact is also dubious—solar panel production and wind turbine manufacturing rely on mining and fossil fuels, undermining the “clean” label.
A Lesson for Rural America: Prioritize Reliability
Rural Americans have been sold a false bill of goods. The push for “sustainable” energy ignores the practical needs of communities that cannot afford to lose power for hours, let alone days. Hospitals, schools, and farms depend on consistent electricity, and blackouts can be deadly, as Europe’s crisis underscored. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum recently warned that the U.S. is “dangerously close” to similar failures due to over-subsidized renewables and restrictions on stable sources like coal and nuclear.
The lesson is clear: energy policy must prioritize reliability over ideology. Nuclear power, which provides steady, carbon-free energy, is a proven solution that Europe has unwisely abandoned. Natural gas, abundant in the U.S., can serve as a reliable bridge fuel. Rural communities should demand transparency from policymakers and developers about the true costs and limitations of renewables, including the need for backup systems and grid upgrades.
Conclusion: Don’t Repeat Europe’s Mistakes
Europe’s blackouts are a wake-up call. The rush to “green” energy, without regard for grid stability or practical realities, has left millions vulnerable and exposed the limits of renewables. Rural Americans, facing similar pressures to adopt solar and wind, must scrutinize these promises. Energy is not just a commodity—it’s a lifeline. By learning from Europe’s failures, rural communities can advocate for a balanced approach that ensures power stays on, no matter the weather or the time of day. The stakes are too high to gamble on a dream that’s already collapsing across the Atlantic.