Spanish Decree: Mobile Networks Must Have More Back-Up Power
When power failed across the Iberian peninsula in late April 2025, mobile networks were among the first casualties.
The blackout ranked among Europe's worst in decades. While businesses shuttered and transport links collapsed, it was the immediate loss of mobile connectivity that exposed just how fragile the region's telecoms infrastructure had become.
For populations dependent on wireless networks, the failure left a lasting impression.
The grid's weakness was alarming. More troubling still was the speed at which telecoms infrastructure went dark once power supplies were severed.
Spain's government has now moved to tackle the problem. On 25 June 2026, Oscar Lopez, the Spanish Government's Digital Transformation Minister, unveiled a decree requiring mobile operators to maintain network coverage for most of the population for at least four hours during power cuts.
Decrees represent Spain's strongest legislative mechanism, enforceable without standard parliamentary procedures.
Deploying such authority demonstrates both the government's determination to prevent a repeat and its view that mobile connectivity has become mission-critical during emergencies.
How the rules will be implemented
Rather than immediate enforcement, the regulation follows a staged rollout.
Operators must harden their networks across half of Spain's population within 12 months, extending to 65% and 75% in years two and three, respectively. Full ratification is expected by the end of 2026.
Crucially, the decree extends beyond traditional mobile network operators. It encompasses the broader digital infrastructure that now supports both telecoms and energy systems. Coverage includes submarine cables linking countries beneath the ocean, satellite networks, data centres and internet exchange points.
Any operator with more than 500,000 users or annual revenue exceeding US$56.8m comes under the mandate.
That threshold captures much of the infrastructure energy companies now depend upon for grid monitoring, power dispatch and control room operations.
Network sites face different requirements
Spain's government has stated that resilience standards will vary by site criticality.
Standard mobile base stations need only meet the four-hour minimum. Regional network management centres handling significant traffic volumes must maintain operations for at least 12 hours without grid power.
The most vital control centres, where failure could trigger nationwide disruption, must guarantee 24 hours of autonomous operation.
Last year's blackout lasted roughly 16 hours in some Iberian regions. The new requirements should therefore cover incidents of comparable severity.
What back-up infrastructure will operators deploy?
The most pressing question surrounding Spain's decree concerns how operators will maintain service when grid power disappears.
Energy storage provides the solution, though rolling out batteries at this magnitude carries substantial costs, which partially explains the phased regulatory timeline.
Thousands of sites nationwide will require batteries, generators or hybrid back-up systems, activating automatically when grid supply fails.
Network operators participated in consultation during drafting and raised concerns about cost and feasibility, prompting the government to moderate its initial targets to make them more realistic within the specified period.
The decree also requires emergency call centres to develop their own continuity plans, including alternative communication channels.
Significantly, Spain is not alone in pursuing this path. Countries including Norway and Australia have drawn similar conclusions that telecoms networks now rank alongside energy systems as critical national infrastructure.
As Spain's Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, said after the blackout on 28 April 2025: "All the necessary measures will be taken to ensure that this does not happen again." Those measures are now taking concrete form.