Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has warned of a “long night ahead” as Europe grapples with its worst blackout in over a decade, plunging businesses, public transit, and critical infrastructure into chaos.

The outage, now nearing its 12th hour, remains unexplained, with no clear timeline for when power will be fully restored.

Red Electrica, reported gradual progress in restoring power, with demand reaching 18.3 gigawatts by 9 p.m.—roughly 75% of pre-blackout levels.

An hour earlier, nearly 20% of the country’s power supply had been restored.

However, large swathes of both nations remained in the dark, threatening economic activity and raising concerns about the reliability of regional energy infrastructure.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez addressed the nation Monday evening, expressing sympathy but offering no immediate solutions.

The blackout’s cause remains under investigation, with analysts warning of potential ripple effects on markets and investor confidence.

He stated, “This is something that has never happened before,” warning that Spain faced a “long night ahead” as efforts to restore power continued.

Sánchez revealed that the country had suffered a catastrophic loss of 15 gigawatts (GW) of electricity generation in just five seconds, equivalent to 60% of Spain’s total energy demand at the time. This sudden drop triggered the widespread blackout, which Sánchez described as the worst in modern history.

The prime minister urged citizens to remain calm and avoid speculation about the cause, saying, “We don’t have conclusive information on the causes, and I ask the public not to speculate.”

He also advised the public to stay at home and keep telephone lines clear to facilitate emergency communications.

Sánchez indicated that authorities were not ruling out any scenarios, suggesting that investigations were ongoing to determine whether the outage resulted from technical failures, cyberattacks, or other factors.

The blackout’s impact was profound, halting transportation, closing businesses, and straining emergency services

The lack of answers fueled public anxiety, with social media posts on X reflecting growing concern and calls for attention to the crisis. For instance, one user remarked, “Wow… we need to pay attention to this,” highlighting the blackout’s significance.

As night fell, Spain braced for continued disruptions. The government mobilized resources to prioritize critical infrastructure, such as hospitals and emergency services, but the scale of the outage posed significant challenges.