Third battery fire in two months at the same site in Germany

[Caribbeans]

Third battery fire at the same site in Germany

It’s the third time in two months that a battery fire has broken out on the premises of Suncycle in Germany.

PV Magazine | Sandra Enkhardt | August 13, 2024

A group of batteries has caught fire at Suncycle, a solar and storage service company located in the German state of Thuringia. The fire marks the third time in two months that fire services were called to the site for a lithium battery fire on Sunday, August 11. Police again suspect a technical defect as the cause of the fires.

“The batteries were intended for disposal and were temporarily stored,” Suncylce managing director, Christian Straub, told pv magazine. “We work with several manufacturers, so unfortunately I cannot provide more precise information.” Unlike the incidents in June, the new fire only affected a group of batteries, but not a container. “Therefore, the damage was significantly smaller,” Straub continued...

...Due to the heavy smoke, a warning was issued for residents to keep windows and doors closed, which remained in place until Monday.

This is the third fire involving a battery storage unit stored at Suncycle since June 7th. The first time, the damage was estimated at around 700,000 euro, and similar toxic air warnings were also issued to residents...more
https://www.pv-magazine.com/2024/08/13/third-battery-fire-at-the-same-site-in-germany/

700,000 Euro x 3 - now we're talking real money, money that was supposed to be "saved" by these environmental disasters.

The Curious may wonder at some point why these numerous battery fires aren't discussed more in the US, particularly since lots of these BESS units are planned.

BESS Failure Incident Database
https://storagewiki.epri.com/index.php/BESS_Failure_Incident_Database
Showing 1 to 10 of 89 entries

Battery ESS Fire: Neermoor, Germany Incident

Batteries aren't always "green" - or safe, or cost effective. Unless you own stock in the companies that make them.

[Think. Again.]

1. It seems that any energy storage tech we use...

...will have it's downside.

All of the fossil fuels are flammable, lithium ion batteries are flammable, Hydrogen is flammable, I guess storing energy is risky.

But, as we all know, we'll need each and every one one of these technologies to get away from the larger and more immediate harms caused by CO2 emissions.

Hopefully we'll be able to improve the safety of these newer energy storage technologies as we begin to make the necessary transition.

[Caribbeans]

3. The supposed risks of hydrogen are discussed repeatedly

and endlessly

while the clearly evident (to those who look) problems with batteries are largely ignored.

Why could that be?

[Think. Again.]

4. Good article! I've always thought H2 was best for heavier vehicles, heavy equipment, etc....

...but all these new energy technologies are still so young, they will all improve over time of course.

[Caribbeans]

2. Last Month: Firefighters are on scene of a fire at a battery energy storage system facility in Santa Ana

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