Boom in demand for electric cars ‘risks fires on cargo ships’

THE increasing demand for electric cars risks causing a wave of fires on cargo ships as they are not designed to carry lithium batteries safely, a major insurer has warned.

Bigger vessels carrying as many as 8,000 vehicles at a time concentrate the risk of fire from lithium batteries which are generally safe, but can heat up and combust if faulty.

The warning comes two months after a car carrier caught fire and sank in the Atlantic, taking with it 4,000 Volkswagen Group vehicles, including Porches and luxury Bentley cars.

Older ships are fitted with fire containment systems that were not designed to cope with chemical fires, a report on shipping losses by insurer Allianz cautions.

They are also often open plan, allowing fires to spread quickly, while tight margins in the industry mean safety protocols can be rushed or forgotten, the report by the company’s industrial insurance wing Global Corporate & Specialty said.

The report said: “Lithium batteries are an emerging risk for both container ships and car carriers, which are transporting growing numbers of electric vehicles, given existing countermeasure systems may not respond effectively in the event of a blaze.”

The Felicity Ace caught fire in February, forcing the evacuation of its 22 crew to the nearby Azores islands. It had been travelling from Emden in Germany to Davisville, Rhode Island, when it caught fire. It sank despite attempts to bring the blaze under control.

Container ship fires are rare, but can be catastrophic.

In 2018, a fire on the Maersk Honam claimed the lives of five of its 27 crew after chemicals it was carrying caught fire and the ship’s carbon dioxide fire suppression system was unable to bring the blaze under control. It was salvaged and renamed the Maersk Halifax.