Shipboard fire experts stress the urgency of developing robust safety guidelines to tackle electric vehicle (EV) fires at sea but there is little sign of a coherent strategy so far.
In terms of probability, there is no more risk of an EV catching fire than one with an internal combustion engine (ICE). However, when an EV fire does occur, the scope of insurance claims climbs dramatically.
This is because lithium-ion battery fires develop far more quickly through ‘thermal runaway’, causing almost spontaneous increases in temperature, and creating poisonous hydrogen-based gases. Unlike ICE vehicle fires, they cannot be extinguished by conventional shipboard sprinkler systems, or manually by seafarers who have undertaken routine fire-fighting courses.
Marine insurance bodies are focusing on the issue. Earlier this month, the International Union of Marine Insurers (IUMI) updated its guidance for vehicle carrier and ro-pax vessel operators, highlighting a risk of explosion during such fires, a problem that has been ‘under-examined’ so far it believes.
Meanwhile, the International Group of P&I Clubs has been working closely with the Vehicle Carrier Safety Forum and individual P&I Club members to investigate the issues. IG Clubs’ concern is rising. They note steady increases in EV trades and volumes, the greater number of EV vehicles on short-sea ferry routes whilst other experts point to the expansion in lithium-ion batteries in other applications including golf carts, mobility scooters and e-bikes.
Capt. Simon Hodgkinson is Head of Loss Prevention at West P&I. Although mutual risks are one stage removed from damage or loss of vessels and the vehicles themselves are covered by cargo insurers, P&I Clubs are exposed on various fronts, he explains. These include risks to crew, such as injury or, in worst case, fatality. There are also liabilities relating to pollution risk and possible wreck removal.
Hodgkinson says that progress is being made on the issue, but there is, as yet, no consensus on dealing with these types of fires. But with growing numbers EVs being shipped by sea, the need for action is becoming more urgent. The Club, of course, has no direct access to the IMO but mutual insurers collectively have a voice through various channels.
EVs are the main focus but lithium-ion batteries are now found everywhere. Container-loads of batteries are carried on ships. The cargo may well not have been properly declared, and seafarers on board may have no idea of the potential hazard.
A key priority, according to Hodgkinson and other marine fire experts, is acceptance of the fact that seafarers need to receive specific training in lithium-ion fires, and specifically relating to EVs on ships. This will require changes to the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) Convention at IMO level.
There must also be ship design changes that enable ships’ crews to tackle EV fires effectively. Hodgkinson points to initiatives including fire blankets, water jets under cars, and the dousing of a burning unit with cold brine at -20oC. But these are one-off initiatives and, so far, there is no coordinated strategy or any sign of new regulations.
Meanwhile the likely challenges for P&I Clubs are deepening. There are trades in secondhand cars to developing countries which, over time, are likely to involve more EVs with ageing batteries in questionable condition. Ferries carry increasing numbers of EVs, alongside many hundreds of passengers. Although no EV-related claim has so far reached the International Group pooling point of $10 million, a major incident could easily do so in the event of significant pollution, injuries or, in the worst case, loss of life.
