Posted on 06/24/2025 1:14:35 PM PDT by Red Badger
A vehicle carrier transporting hundreds of Chinese electric vehicles (EV) sank in the Pacific Ocean after catching fire, fueling renewed concerns about the hazard associated with EV batteries, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
The Morning Midas was carrying approximately 3,000 cars, including around 800 EVs, most of which were manufactured in China, according to the WSJ. While the exact cause of the fire is still under investigation, lithium-ion batteries used in many EVs are known to be highly flammable, and have been linked to similar maritime incidents in the past.
The ship had been drifting in the ocean after a fire broke out on June 3, prompting the crew to abandon the vessel. At the time of the incident, the vessel was en route to Mexico.
Several similar incidents involving ships carrying EVs have occurred in recent years. Experts linked a 2022 incident, in which a cargo ship transporting thousands of cars went down in the Atlantic Ocean after catching fire, to a large number of lithium-ion batteries on board, the WSJ noted.
Additionally, the insurance company Allianz recently issued a report warning about the risks of shipping vehicles containing lithium-ion batteries, citing a series of recent fires on vessels, ports and battery facilities. A notable case in 2024 involved a fire and explosion on a container ship docked at a Chinese port, which is thought to have been triggered by a container carrying hazardous materials, including lithium batteries.
“The latest car carriers are able to transport as many as 10,000 electric vehicles. Should something go wrong, that’s a lot of value, and risk to the environment and to the safety of seafarers,” the report read.
Highlighting the potential environmental consequences of the Morning Midas’ sinking, elevated levels of toxic metals were detected near a battery storage facility that burned down in California earlier this year.
The investigation into the cause of the fire aboard the Morning Midas is expected to take several weeks or even months, the WSJ previously reported. Typically, shipowners will hire private salvagers to investigate along with the ship’s insurers and the country of registration, which is Liberia.
Promoting EVs has been a priority for many Democratic leaders, including former President Joe Biden, who implemented new regulations and tax credits to incentivize their production. Additionally, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a ban on the sale of new gas-powered vehicles in the state by 2035, though the rule was recently blocked by the Republican-controlled Congress and President Donald Trump.
It finally sank?
There were salvage vessels and or sea going tugs at her location.
That changes the equation on transporting Chinese EVs at all.
There’s still many railroads to get these cars to Russia, Europe and Africa.
They should ship the batteries separately or build them here instead.....................
Oversized electric golf cart fanbois hardest hit.
California EV dreamers stumped - when suddenly there is no insurance for EV vehicles.
A Yuge win for da erf........
sarc
Crazy.
I have read of knowledgable people who say that the Insurers are eventually going to jack up the insurance for drivers on those cars, raise homeowner insurance if you own one and park it in the garage, and ban the transport of EVs on regular ferries.
Not to mention the maritime insurance which would increase the shipping costs.
I can completely see how these things can happen.
Although I can also see how things like a huge continuing resolution bill with hundreds of items in it could contain legislation that would prohibit insurers from doing this because electric vehicles are deemed a protected industry.
I just replaced a tablet after the battery swelled up so badly the screen came unsealed from the case; by the last day of use I was holding it with my thumb in between the case and the screen because the screen was lifted more than 3/8”. Li-Ion batteries have serious issues, and now I have to think where I store any devices that have them, to try to mitigate the risk of a fire if they overheat.
That ship is still in the box it came in.
Democrap EV cheerleaders should be made to ride on these transporters.
If these were Chinese made, China needs to get them out of the water and take them back.
So now all the lithium in the bottom of the ocean can come loose and contaminate the ocean water and go around the world entering the world’s soil?
Yes? No?
A Jacksonville fl airport garage was damaged to the tune of 38 million a few weeks ago. The fire started in a vehicle. Attempts to find out if it was an EV have been met with zero info.
If these had been Hondas, we might have had SunkenCiv-ics.
Whatever floats your boat. Or doesn’t.
I thought at first Glenn Beck is really going overboard this time.
No. The oceans already contain over 230,000,000,000 TONS of lithium.
“the vessel was en route to Mexico.”
To try and dump on our market?
The earliest golf cars were gas powered.
An oversized gas golf cart:
34 people were killed due to this in this ship. Scuba divers trapped.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_MV_Conception
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