The Spanish Grid Goes Down: Are renewables really to blame?

The Spanish Grid Goes Down: Are renewables really to blame?

On April 28th, millions of people across Spain, Portugal and beyond were plunged into darkness in one of Europe’s most severe blackouts in decades. Was it a cyberattack? A renewables failure? Or might things be a little more complex?


This week, Tom Rivett-Carnac, Christiana Figueres, and Paul Dickinson dig into what we know, what we don’t, and ask what this blackout really tells us about the transition to renewables. They speak with energy strategist Kingsmill Bond of Ember and hear an on-the-ground account from José Manuel Entrecanales, CEO of global renewables leader Acciona, to build a picture of how our grids function – and how they fail.


Plus: what can we say when friends or colleagues claim that ‘renewables aren’t reliable’? And, after our recent conversations reflecting on the legacy of Pope Francis, what might Pope Leo XIV mean for future climate leadership?


Learn more


🔌 Ember’s report, ‘Energy Security in an Insecure World


🎧 Octopus CEO Greg Jackson interviewed on the Azeem Azhar’s Exponential View podcast


💡 Simon Evans’s analysis for Carbon Brief on the role of gas in electricity pricing


🌐 The IEA’s report, ‘Electricity Grids and Secure Energy Transitions


🌳 ‘Pope Francis was a passionate climate advocate. Will Pope Leo XIV continue his legacy?’ in EuroNews



Follow us on social media for behind the scenes moments and to watch our videos:


Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism


Or get in touch with us via this form.


Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas


This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(394)

Can the rules keep up?: Lawsuits, LLMs and the looming oil recession

Can the rules keep up?: Lawsuits, LLMs and the looming oil recession

An unprecedented government move to outrun the courts. A country racing to write AI into its constitution. And a global energy crisis that's already moved faster than any possible fix. Are our institu...

21 Touko 46min

The Jet Fuel Crisis: What’s next for aviation?

The Jet Fuel Crisis: What’s next for aviation?

Are flights across the world about to be grounded? Is a terrible war about to create an unlikely good news story for the climate? As conflict in the Middle East threatens the Strait of Hormuz, jet fue...

14 Touko 50min

David Attenborough at 100

David Attenborough at 100

Monarch butterflies crossing a continent. Peregrine falcons above Manhattan. A giant lemur most of the world had never heard of, until one man pointed a camera at it. For seventy years, Sir David Atte...

7 Touko 40min

“This is civilisation changing stuff”: Is AMOC the hardest climate story to tell?

“This is civilisation changing stuff”: Is AMOC the hardest climate story to tell?

Europe plunged into a deep freeze. Life as we know it upended. The 2004 film ‘The Day After Tomorrow’ gave a generation of terrified journalists an impossible task: how do you communicate the counter ...

30 Huhti 45min

Beyond the Oil Crisis: What’s actually blocking the transition?

Beyond the Oil Crisis: What’s actually blocking the transition?

The Iran crisis continues to prove how dangerously dependent the global economy is on fossil fuels. But what will it actually take to move beyond them?In this episode, Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-...

23 Huhti 43min

It’s In Our Blood: Communities vs Forever Chemicals

It’s In Our Blood: Communities vs Forever Chemicals

There are chemicals in your blood that weren't there fifty years ago. They are in the products you use, the water you drink, the food you eat - and for years, almost nobody was told the full truth abo...

16 Huhti 42min

The Health Emergency Hiding in Rising Seas

The Health Emergency Hiding in Rising Seas

Sea-level rise is often spoken about in centimetres, forecasts and future scenarios. But what if we understood it as a health emergency that is already reshaping lives, harming bodies and minds, and d...

9 Huhti 42min

Forecasting Disaster: A ‘super’ El Niño? And the case for early action

Forecasting Disaster: A ‘super’ El Niño? And the case for early action

As headlines warn of a possible ‘super El Niño’ later this year, we ask: how do we respond to a warning before it becomes a catastrophe? The last major El Niño brought record heat, crop failures, floo...

2 Huhti 36min

Suosittua kategoriassa Politiikka ja uutiset

uutiscast
aikalisa
politiikan-puskaradio
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2
viisupodi
rss-ootsa-kuullut-tasta
rss-vaalirankkurit-podcast
tervo-halme
the-ulkopolitist
rss-asiastudio
rss-podme-livebox
rss-pinnalla
otetaan-yhdet
et-sa-noin-voi-sanoo-esittaa
rss-ulkopoditiikkaa
aihe
rikosmyytit
rss-girls-finish-f1rst
rss-polikulaari-pitka-kiekko-ja-muut-ts-podcastit
rss-vain-talouselamaa