Spain and Portugal hit by nationwide power outages

Spain and Portugal have been hit by a power outage covering wide areas across the two countries. Capitals Madrid and Lisbon are included in the outages as grid operators work to resolve the issue.

Spanish power grid operator Red Electrica said it was working with energy companies to restore power in affected areas.

Parts of France may also be affected, Spanish media has reported, alongside large Spanish cities like Seville, Barcelona and Valencia. Reports also indicate that telephone lines are down in parts of the country.

Telephone lines were down across the country, reports said.

Spanish radio network Cadena Ser reports that prime minister Pedro Sánchez is on his way to Red Electrica headquarters to assess the situation.

The grid operator has confirmed on social media that the process of regaining power in the country will now be “gradual” as its engineers work on the grid in the north and south of the country.

Local media in Madrid says that parts of the underground metro have been evacuated and roads cleared as traffic lights in the city have stopped working.

E-Redes, a Spanish electricity grid monitoring company, said in a statement it was working on reestablishing connection in phases.

"This is a wider European problem," it added.

The ongoing Madrid Open tennis tournament has also suspended matches for the time being.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated with more details shortly...