A power outage paralysed large parts of the Czech Republic on Friday – at times, public transport in Prague came to a complete standstill. It took twelve hours before the grid operator was able to give the all-clear.
Following the widespread outage, the situation returned to normal late on Friday evening. Shortly after 10 p.m., the state-owned grid operator ČEPS reported that it had successfully repaired a high-voltage line, whose technical fault was the main cause of the disruption.
The blackout had a significant impact on transport and industry throughout the country. The cause: a broken phase conductor on a high-voltage line – specifically the V411 line, one of the most important routes for transmitting electricity in the Czech Republic. Another key power line, the V208, connecting the Central Bohemian Region with Prague, was also overloaded. Simultaneously, one unit of the Ledvice power plant in northern Bohemia failed, and the Krasíkov substation in eastern Bohemia was also affected.
According to Czech media, the north-west of the country – particularly the Ústecký kraj region – was especially hard hit. In Ústí nad Labem, it took around five hours to fully restore electricity. Traffic lights were out of order and public transport was limited. Tram lines in Most were at a standstill, and in Ústí only battery-powered and diesel buses were able to run, while trolleybuses were out of service.
Public Transport in Prague Severely Affected
In Prague, the right bank of the Vltava River was particularly affected. The outage paralysed several public transport lines: tram lines 2 to 26, trolleybus line 58, and all three metro lines – A, B and C – were temporarily out of service. The metro resumed operations within about 30 minutes, and by 3 p.m., all trams were also back in service.
Industry also felt the impact. The Orlen oil refinery in Litvínov had to halt production in the afternoon – restarting operations will take several days. However, according to the State Material Reserves Administration, there is no immediate threat of a fuel shortage. Around 200 petrol stations across the country were temporarily out of service. Car manufacturer Škoda Auto also suspended production at its plants in Mladá Boleslav, Kvasiny and Vrchlabí. Numerous train connections were also affected by the power outage.
In the Liberecký kraj region, power was cut off in nearly all areas around midday. It took about two hours before energy suppliers could begin gradually restoring electricity.
The incident highlights the vulnerability of the Czech power grid, particularly during periods of high summer demand. Energy experts warn that as pressure on the grid increases, so does the risk of further widespread outages. Investments in grid stability and the expansion of critical infrastructure are now more urgent than ever.
