Portugal is enduring a dramatic surge in electricity prices after deciding to temporarily slash its power imports from Spain, whose grid collapse last week triggered a blackout across the Iberian peninsula.
Wholesale electricity prices in Portugal were nearly five times higher than those in Spain earlier this week as Lisbon halted imports from its neighbour. Usually the two countries pay roughly the same for power.
The Iberian peninsula functions as an “energy island” in which Portugal last year imported one-fifth of its electricity from its neighbour, but the power wipeout that began in Spain on April 28 has created tensions between the two countries.