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Brussels Takes Action Against Spain Over Failure To Update Blackout Plan

Published

23 hours ago

October 1, 2026

brussels-takes-action-against-spain-over-failure-to-update-blackout-plan

Spain now has two months to respond to Brussels’ formal notice. Photo credit: Drop of Light/Shutterstock

When the lights suddenly go out, most people are not thinking about European electricity regulations. They are thinking about how long the fridge will stay cold, whether the phone still has enough battery and how they will pay for anything if the card machines stop working. After Spain’s huge blackout in April 2025, the question of how prepared the country really is for another major power failure has become much harder to ignore.

Now Brussels has opened a formal infringement procedure against Spain because the country has not notified the European Commission of its updated electricity risk-preparedness plan, despite the deadline passing in January 2026. France is facing the same action, while Belgium has received an additional formal notice. The Commission’s action does not mean Brussels has declared Spain incapable of preventing another blackout, nor does it say the missing plan caused the April 2025 outage. It concerns Spain’s failure to notify the updated plan required under EU rules.

Spain missed the January deadline

Under EU Regulation 2019/941, member states must adopt and publish an updated electricity risk-preparedness plan every four years. The latest plans were due to be notified to the European Commission by 5 January 2026. Spain had not done so by the deadline, according to the Commission, which has now sent the country a letter of formal notice. Spain has two months to respond. If Brussels decides that the response does not resolve the issue, the procedure could move to the next stage, known as a reasoned opinion.

These plans are not simply paperwork sitting in a Brussels filing cabinet. They are supposed to set out the measures a country has planned or taken to prevent, prepare for and deal with an electricity crisis. That includes situations caused by extreme weather, malicious attacks, fuel shortages and other events capable of disrupting electricity supplies. Because European electricity networks are interconnected, a serious incident in one country can also affect its neighbours.

What should Spain’s plan cover?

The purpose of the preparedness plans is to establish how countries would respond if their electricity systems came under serious pressure. They are based on national and regional crisis scenarios and are intended to help ensure that electricity can be directed where it is needed during a crisis. The plans also have to consider how countries would cooperate with one another when an emergency crosses national borders.

That cross-border element is particularly relevant to Spain. The Iberian Peninsula’s electricity system is connected to the wider European network through interconnections with France, while Spain and Portugal operate closely linked electricity systems. The European Commission itself has been reviewing the EU’s electricity security rules in light of recent crises. In January 2026, it said the review had taken lessons from the April 2025 blackout across the Iberian Peninsula, alongside other energy-security problems, and identified the need for a stronger approach to future risks.

The blackout that left millions without power

The timing is likely to make the latest Brussels action particularly significant for people in Spain. On 28 April 2025, a massive power failure swept across Spain and Portugal, leaving millions without electricity. Trains stopped, traffic lights went out, businesses were unable to operate normally and card payments and other services were disrupted. Last year EWN reported at the time how the blackout affected everyday life across Spain, from transport and communications to shops and petrol stations.

Spain and Portugal blackout: what really caused the chaos? The European Commission has subsequently examined the lessons from the event as part of its wider assessment of European energy-security rules. However, the current infringement procedure is not an accusation that Spain’s delayed preparedness plan caused that blackout. The two issues should not be confused. For people who experienced the outage first-hand, though, the idea of Spain being told it has not submitted its latest preparedness plan is likely to raise an obvious question: what happens if the lights go out again?

What happens now?

The infringement procedure does not immediately impose a fine or change how electricity is supplied to Spanish homes. Spain now has two months to respond to Brussels’ formal notice and address the failure to notify its updated risk-preparedness plan. If the Commission is not satisfied with the response, it can issue a reasoned opinion setting out the alleged breach in greater detail and giving Spain another opportunity to comply.

If the matter remained unresolved after that stage, the Commission could ultimately take the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union. Spain is not the only country facing action over the missing update. France has also been sent a formal notice, while Belgium had already received a letter in March 2026 over earlier failures relating to its electricity risk-preparedness plan and has now received an additional notice concerning its latest update.

For anyone living in Spain, the practical issue is simple: electricity crises can affect far more than the lights in your home. The 2025 blackout showed what happens when transport, communications, payments, businesses and essential services suddenly lose power. EWN has also reported on more recent local power cuts, including repeated outages affecting residents around Mijas and Fuengirola during the summer of 2026. Power blackouts force Las Cañadas residents onto streets Brussels is now waiting for Spain to explain why its updated national plan has not been notified, and what it intends to do about it.

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Brussels takes action against Spain over failure to update blackout plan

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Costa Del Sol Tolls Winter Rates October 1

Published

12 hours ago

October 2, 2026

Lucy Ramnought

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Good news is back for anyone heading across the Costa del Sol this autumn. Toll prices on the AP-7 have returned to their cheaper winter prices from October 1. Summer peak pricing ended on September 30, so the standard 2026 tariffs now apply at the Calahonda, San Pedro Alcantara and Manilva toll booths.

Standard prices for cars and light vehicles

Each booth charges in two ways. The “troncal” is the main toll on the motorway itself, while the “lateral” is a smaller charge for joining or leaving via a slip road. The light category covers motorbikes, cars, certain two-axle vans and two-axle minibuses. All prices include IVA, Spain’s version of VAT, and the summer price is in brackets:

Calahonda main toll: €5.70 (€9.25)
Calahonda slip road: €3.55 (€5.75)
San Pedro main toll: €3.85 (€6.25)
San Pedro slip road: €2.20 (€3.60)
Manilva main toll: €2.45 (€4.05)
Manilva slip road: €1.20 (€2.00)

Driving the full route between Malaga and Guadiaro now costs €12 each way, compared with €19.55 over the summer.

What about heavy vehicles?

Reductions are smaller for bigger vehicles. “Pesado 1” (Heavy 1) covers two- and three-axle lorries and some vans or minibuses towing trailers. Prices at Calahonda and San Pedro stay as they were in summer, but Manilva falls from €4.60 to €3.65 for the main toll and from €2.25 to €1.80 for the slip road.

“Pesado 2” (Heavy 2) includes lorries with four or more axles and several types of coach. These drivers pay less at every booth:

Calahonda: €11.35 main toll (was €15.25) and €7.05 slip road (was €9.50)
San Pedro: €7.70 main toll (was €10.35) and €4.45 slip road (was €5.95)
Manilva: €4.80 main toll (was €6.95) and €2.35 slip road (was €3.40)

Why are tolls cheaper from October?

Ausol, the company that runs the motorway, uses a two-season system set under national government regulations. Peak rates apply from June 1 to September 30, plus 17 days around Easter, running from the Friday before Holy Week to the Sunday after Easter Sunday. Standard rates cover everything else.

Summer prices sit roughly 63% above standard ones, which is why October feels like a relief even though this is simply the normal winter tariff rather than a new discount.

How do these prices compare with last winter?

Standard rates are a touch higher than a year ago. Calahonda’s main toll went from €5.50 to €5.70, San Pedro’s from €3.71 to €3.85, and Manilva’s rose by 9 cents to €2.45.

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Two Guardia Civil Officers Shot

Published

12 hours ago

October 2, 2026

Lottie Verrier

Two Guardia Civil officers have been injured in a shooting in Catalonia after a police operation targeting suspected motorway thieves ended in an armed confrontation.

The incident happened at around 10pm on Thursday, October 1, in the Can Parellada area of Terrassa, Barcelona.

One of the officers was seriously injured after being hit by four shots and was taken to Parc Taulí Hospital in nearby Sabadell for treatment.

Despite the severity of his injuries, his life is not believed to be in danger. The second Guardia Civil officer was also injured during the confrontation.

Three suspects have since been arrested in connection with the shooting, according to the latest reports from the Mossos d’Esquadra investigation.

Officers were following suspected motorway thieves

The two Guardia Civil officers were working in plain clothes and travelling in an unmarked vehicle as part of an operation targeting a group of suspected thieves.

The suspects are described by Spanish police sources as ‘teloneros’, a term used for criminals who target vehicles and lorries on motorways, often stealing goods from trucks.

The operation began around the AP-7 motorway, close to the Porta de Barcelona service area in Castellbisbal.

A pursuit subsequently developed and continued into Terrassa, eventually reaching Calle Europa in the Can Parellada neighbourhood.

According to investigators, the suspects opened fire after discovering that they were being followed by the Guardia Civil.

An exchange of gunfire then took place in the street.

The more seriously injured officer suffered four gunshot wounds, including injuries to his abdomen, leg and arm. He was taken to hospital and required surgery. Reports say he remains outside life-threatening danger despite the seriousness of his injuries.

Three arrests after overnight police operation

The Mossos d’Esquadra launched an investigation immediately after the shooting, with its Criminal Investigation Division taking charge of the case.

Police subsequently located several of the suspected attackers inside an occupied warehouse in Terrassa.

A specialist Mossos unit, the GEI, was brought in during the early hours of Friday morning before officers entered the building and arrested three people.

One of those detained is suspected of being the person who fired the shots, although the investigation is continuing and further arrests have not been ruled out.

The incident has highlighted the risks faced by officers carrying out surveillance operations against organised groups involved in motorway and lorry thefts.

The investigation remains ongoing as detectives work to establish exactly what happened during the pursuit and determine the involvement of each of those arrested.

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Where Are Spain’s Richest And Poorest Towns? See How Your Municipality Compares

Published

23 hours ago

October 1, 2026

Molly Grace

where-are-spain’s-richest-and-poorest-towns?-see-how-your-municipality-compares

Madrid and Barcelona feature particularly heavily among the highest-income municipalities. Photo credit: Kirk Fisher/Shutterstock

If you have ever wondered whether the place you call home is actually as well-off as it feels, Spain’s latest income figures offer a way to check. The numbers vary dramatically from one municipality to another, with the average declared gross income in the richest town more than six times that of the lowest-ranked municipality.

The latest figures from Spain’s Tax Agency were published on September 30, and cover income declared for 2024. They allow residents to compare municipalities across the country. The national average gross income declared through IRPF reached €33,239 that year, after rising by around 6 per cent. Average disposable income reached €26,616, up 5.5 per cent. But where you live makes a surprisingly large difference.

The richest municipalities in Spain

At the top of the table is Pozuelo de Alarcón in Madrid, where the average declared gross income was €92,564 in 2024. That was followed by Benahavís in Málaga, at €79,041, and Boadilla del Monte in Madrid, at €76,478.

The rest of the top ten were:

Matadepera, Barcelona: €76,238
Sant Just Desvern, Barcelona: €69,706
Sant Cugat del Vallès, Barcelona: €69,096
Alcobendas, Madrid: €68,574
Alella, Barcelona: €66,847
Torrelodones, Madrid: €66,236
Cabrils, Barcelona: €65,126

The figures cover municipalities with more than 1,000 inhabitants in Spain’s common tax regime, so this is not a ranking of every tiny village in Spain. The Basque Country and Navarra are excluded because they operate under separate tax systems.

Madrid and Barcelona feature particularly heavily among the highest-income municipalities, with several affluent commuter towns appearing near the top rather than the centres of the two major cities themselves. That is worth remembering when looking at headline figures about the wealthiest parts of Spain. Different datasets can produce different rankings because they measure different things. The Tax Agency figures here refer specifically to average gross income declared by IRPF taxpayers, rather than an individual’s salary.

And at the other end?

The difference becomes particularly striking when the table is turned upside down. Guadahortuna in Granada had the lowest average declared gross income among the municipalities included in the latest statistics, at €14,514. Next came La Parra in Badajoz, at €15,384, followed by Benamargosa in Málaga, at €15,502. That puts Guadahortuna at less than half the national average of €33,239.

The figures also show how dramatically income can vary between municipalities in different parts of Spain. At the top of the table, several municipalities around Madrid and Barcelona record average declared incomes above €65,000, while the lowest-ranked municipalities are below €16,000.

What about the provinces?

The same pattern appears when the figures are examined geographically, although the municipal figures can be very different from the averages for an entire province. The latest municipal figures show particularly high-income areas concentrated around Madrid, Barcelona and parts of Málaga, with Benahavís standing out because of its extraordinary jump between 2023 and 2024.

The Costa del Sol municipality recorded an average gross income of €79,041 in 2024, compared with €43,159 the previous year. That represents an increase of 83.14 per cent in just one year and moved Benahavís from 56th place nationally to second. For anyone living in Andalucía, that makes the municipal figures particularly interesting. The region contains municipalities with very different income levels, while a single average for the entire region can hide substantial differences between individual towns.

The figures are also useful alongside other measures of household pressure. EWN has previously looked at how rising everyday costs are affecting people living in Spain, with basic household spending taking an increasing share of income. Spain’s rising cost of living Housing creates another major difference between locations. EWN has also reported on the growing income requirements facing people trying to buy property in Spain, with the amount needed varying sharply between cities and regions. Buying a home in Spain is slipping further out of reach

So where does your municipality sit?

The Tax Agency’s IRPF statistics by municipality allow people to go beyond the national headlines and look at individual municipalities with more than 1,000 inhabitants. The database provides figures including gross and estimated disposable income for municipalities across the common tax regime. That means you can check the figures for your own town rather than assuming that the average for your province or autonomous community tells the whole story.

It is also worth remembering what the number does, and does not, mean. A municipal average is not the salary that every resident receives, nor does it tell you what an individual household has left after rent, mortgage payments, energy bills and other costs. It does, however, provide a snapshot of how declared income differs across the places where people live. And the gap is substantial: €92,564 in Spain’s highest-income municipality compared with €14,514 in the lowest.