Spain Heat Wave Tests Power Grid’s Post-Blackout Pivot to Gas

Increasing power demand to cool homes in Spain is putting pressure on energy prices after the country’s grid boosted its reliance on gas generation in the wake of a massive blackout.

The output of Spanish gas-fired power plants has jumped 58% since the April 28 nationwide outage, according to data from Entso-E. This is being done to better stabilize the network, with cheaper wind generation curtailed to balance the power mix, while soaring temperatures across Europe increase the use of air conditioning.