South Korea’s alarm over electric vehicle battery fires highlights safety concerns

South Korea is urging automakers operating in the country to disclose the manufacturer of batteries used in electric vehicles (EVs) as authorities seek to calm fears of fires involving electric vehicles following a recent fire in an underground parking lot. which took eight hours to extinguish.

Experts say more can be done, however, noting that while identifying the specific manufacturer of batteries used in electric vehicles would give consumers more options, there is a lack of definitive data on which brands are most prone to fires.

Here are some details on what we know about electric vehicle fire safety concerns:

WHY WERE EV FIRES IN THE HEADLINES IN SOUTH KOREA?

An August 1 fire that appeared to start spontaneously in a Mercedes-Benz using Farasis Energy batteries parked in the city of Incheon took more than eight hours to extinguish, destroying or damaging about 140 cars and forcing some residents in apartments. above to move to shelters.

Images after the fire showed dozens of charred vehicles with only their metal frames left.

Officials said the fire was exacerbated because equipment such as sprinklers in the parking lot did not work properly.

The fire prompted the government to hold a series of meetings to devise measures to prevent such incidents.

WHAT DO EV fire data show?

Electric vehicles don’t seem to be catching fire as much as recent headlines would suggest.

In the United States, electric vehicles caught fire at a rate of 25 per 100,000 units sold, compared with 1,530 for gasoline vehicles and 3,475 for hybrids, according to a study by insurance company AutoInsuranceEZ published in 2023 using data from National Transportation Safety. Board.

South Korea recorded 72 fires involving electric vehicles last year, up 200 percent from 24 in 2021, according to the National Fire Agency.

The number of fires per 10,000 electric vehicles was 1.3 last year in South Korea, compared with 1.9 for internal combustion engine vehicles, according to the Science and Technology Policy Institute.

Nearly one in five cars sold globally in 2023 was electric, according to the International Energy Agency, with nearly 14 million sold, mostly in China, Europe and the United States. This brought the total number of electric vehicles on the road to 40 million.

WHY CAN IT BE HARDER TO WORK IN EV?

Auto experts say EV battery fires burn differently than internal combustion engine fires, often lasting longer and being harder to put out because they tend to reignite.

Electric vehicles are powered by lithium-ion batteries, which can store a massive amount of energy. If a battery is damaged or has a design problem or an internal short circuit, a fire can result from a chain reaction known as thermal runaway.

Flammable chemicals can release their own oxygen as they burn, allowing EV fires to reignite hours or even days after they appear to have been extinguished, experts say.

WHAT IS SOUTH KOREA DOING IN THE VULNERABLE DEPARTMENT TO EV FIRE?

South Korea is one of the most densely populated nations in the world. More than 60 percent of its 50 million residents live in apartments or other multi-household housing, government data show, often using underground parking lots with electric vehicle charging stations.

“South Korea’s somewhat unique environment, such as a large number of cars parked in an enclosed space at the same time, could make it more difficult to put out a fire,” said Jegal Yeong-soon, a professor at the School of Safety Against fires at Kyungil University. .

WHAT MEASURES CAN BE TAKEN TO REDUCE THE RISKS?

In recent days, companies such as Hyundai Motor, Mercedes-Benz Korea, Kia Corp. and Volkswagen Korea have begun identifying their battery suppliers.

Analysts say this does not go far enough to reduce fire risks, stressing the need for better battery management systems, as well as more sophisticated and earlier warnings and stronger fire safety measures for car parks.

Moon Hak-hoon, a professor of automotive engineering at Osan University, said authorities should also create a certification scheme to guarantee the safety of EV batteries.

Kim Jonghoon, a professor at Chungnam National University who studies electric vehicles, said preventing EV owners from fully charging their batteries could reduce fire risks because there have been several cases of fires when the battery is charged above 90 percent, although he notes that automakers looking to achieve longer mileages will likely oppose this.

Kim sees a potential short-term negative impact on electric vehicle sales in South Korea due to concerns over recent wildfires, but is optimistic about the transition to electric vehicles in the longer term.

The number of inquiries from people wanting to sell electric vehicles in South Korea rose 184 percent between Aug. 1 and 7 from a week earlier, according to used car trading platform K Car 381970.KS.

(Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Ju-min Park; Editing by Ed Davies and Christian Schmollinger)

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