MADRID (Reuters) -Iberdrola does not expect any financial impact from potential compensation claims in relation to the blackout that hit Spain and Portugal on April 28, Spain’s biggest power utility said as it reported half-year results on Wednesday.
Redeia-owned grid operator REE has accepted that the outage was triggered by a surge in voltage but has traded blame with power utilities for the blackout, which caused massive gridlock in cities and left thousands stranded on trains and in elevators across the Iberian peninsula.
Internal and external experts analysed the event and concluded that companies within the Iberdrola group were not the cause of the blackout, “nor did they contribute in any way to the occurrence”, the company said.
Its power and distribution assets contributed effectively to the restoration of electricity supply, the company added.
While denying any liability for the power outage, Iberdrola said that any potential claims would be covered by civil liability insurance policies.
The group has yet to receive any legal claims related to the blackout.
However, Iberdrola did report that the blackout contributed to a one-off hit of 135 million euros ($158 million) in the first half of the year, citing higher costs of services that help to maintain grid stability.
The company also reported a 25 million euro charge in Portugal for similar reasons.
($1 = 0.8527 euros)
(Reporting by Pietro LombardiEditing by David Goodman)
