Thursday, 3 April 2025
Home Topics Transport Electric Vehicles (EVs) Mercedes-Benz Korea discloses EV battery makers after fire
Electric Vehicles (EVs)IndustryManufacturingNewsTransport

Mercedes-Benz Korea discloses EV battery makers after fire

109
A Mercedes electric car charging station at a parking lot in Seoul. Mercedes-Benz Korea has released the names of its electric vehicle battery suppliers, bowing to public outrage after one of its cars burst into flame in a parking lot earlier this month. (AFP)
A Mercedes electric car charging station at a parking lot in Seoul. Mercedes-Benz Korea has released the names of its electric vehicle battery suppliers, bowing to public outrage after one of its cars burst into flame in a parking lot earlier this month. (AFP)

Mercedes-Benz Korea released the names of its electric vehicle battery suppliers on Tuesday, bowing to public outrage after one of its cars burst into flame in a parking lot earlier this month.

The August 1 fire damaged hundreds of vehicles and created a national panic, with car parks across South Korea imposing a wave of adhoc restrictions amid growing calls for transparency on battery supply chains.

South Korea is a major producer of batteries and electric vehicles, including local carmakers Hyundai and Kia, with EVs making up 9.3 percent of new cars purchased last year — higher than in the US.

“Although the analysis is still in progress, the CCTV footage suggests that this fire exhibits all the signs of being caused by a battery,” a spokesman at the Incheon Fire Department told AFP.

According to experts, battery fires are tougher to extinguish than conventional ones due to the thermal runaway effect — a chain reaction within battery cells.

The Mercedes-Benz model EQE 350 that exploded into flames had a battery from Chinese manufacturer Farasis Energy, Mercedes Korea disclosed on its website Tuesday.

Local media have shown dramatic images of the car catching fire, causing a blaze that destroyed 40 vehicles in the parking lot, with the fire department saying some 23 people were hospitalised for smoke inhalation.

Fire authorities are investigating the deactivation of the car park’s sprinkler system in the fire’s initial minutes, with local media speculating a maintenance worker may have thought it had been activated in error.

South Korea’s Office for Policy Coordination said Tuesday it would recommend automakers voluntarily disclose the battery brand information for all electric vehicles sold in the country.

“To alleviate the concerns of residents in multi-unit housing, it has been decided to conduct urgent inspections of fire safety facilities, such as sprinklers, in underground parking lots,” it added.

The government also plans to offer a “free inspection” of electric vehicles to ease any fire-related concerns among their owners, they said.

The incident has heightened concerns about the safety of electric vehicles, prompting some apartment complexes to ban EVs from underground parking and to shut down charging stations.

Other Mercedes battery suppliers include South Korean companies LG Energy Solution and SK On and China’s CATL, the company revealed Tuesday.

The fire has sparked a public demand for mandatory disclosure of battery suppliers by EV manufacturers.

Related Articles

Lilium burnt through huge sums while trying to develop its jet (AFP)

German flying taxi start-up’s rescue deal collapses

A German flying taxi start-up said on Friday it would halt operations...

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum speaks as he attends a signing ceremony with members of the West Virginia Congressional Delegation at the EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 18, 2025. REUTERS/Kent Nishimura/File Photo

US energy council chief says power plants to produce 15% more electricity

By Valerie Volcovici WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Interior Secretary and co-chair of...

Cuba has inaugurated a new solar energy park in the capital Havana (AFP)

Cuba opens solar park hoping to stave off blackouts

Cuba on Friday unveiled a new solar energy park in the capital...

FILE PHOTO: Cranes unload imported iron ore from a cargo vessel at a port in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China October 27, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo

Iron ore heads for weekly gain on brightening demand outlook, China stimulus hopes

By Amy Lv and Lewis Jackson BEIJING (Reuters) -Iron ore futures prices...

Login into your Account

Please login to like, dislike or bookmark this article.