In Spain, that meant high shares of solar and wind power in the mix, and wholesale power prices hovering close to zero. Spain allows greater leeway than other EU countries, meaning the grid continues to function with voltages pushing 435,000 volts (435kV), Cortinas explained. A letter from Valencia: How Europe’s powerful got stuck in Spain without power VALENCIA – On Monday afternoon, Valencia resembled a scene from a post-apocalyptic movie. In 2023, Spain spent more to manage its already congested transmission grid than it invested in its development, the UK-based think tank Ember warned last year. But there is no expectation that any one protagonist – whether it be Spain’s transmission grid operator Red Eléctrica, the government itself, or the operators of conventional or renewable generation plants – will be blamed in full.