WSC: Better Rules Needed to Manage Fire Risk of Small Li-Ion Batteries
Lithium-ion batteries come with known fire risks, and they are a top cargo of concern for container lines and ro/ro operators. Improperly-declared battery cargoes - transported out of compliance with IMDG Code rules - are a significant hazard. But under current regulations, shippers can pack as many small batteries as they want into a standard box without telling the carrier what's inside - a fully compliant loophole that the World Shipping Council says that governments must take action to close.
The volume of lithium-ion batteries in circulation has risen sixfold in the last five years, according to estimates from the International Energy Agency, and demand is expected to double by the end of the decade. Clean-energy transport, utility-level grid storage, personal electronic devices and countless industrial and commercial applications have all driven up demand for these batteries, which are the gold standard in durable, high-energy-density technology. When they short out or overheat, they can catch fire and emit toxic, flammable gases at an explosive rate, and the resulting blaze is difficult to extinguish. In a shipboard setting, they are a potential hazard that must be managed by following safe-stowage protocols.
The IMDG Code has specific rules for declaring and stowing dangerous goods, including large lithium-ion battery packs. However, smaller batteries fall under an IMDG exception (SP188) if they meet certain testing criteria. They do not have to be disclosed and shipped with the same precautions - even if there are lots of them packed together.
Using a typical consumer-electronics example, WSC notes that a standard 40-foot shipping container might carry as many as 4,200 laptops, which could have as much total battery capacity as three to four electric vehicles. Electric car battery packs are a known, regulated fire risk, but the risk can be mitigated to a safe and acceptable level if managed appropriately. The equivalent battery content in a cargo of laptops could be dropped off by the shipper unbeknownst to the container line, rendering proper management impossible. WSC says that this has caused known incidents and needs to be changed.
“We know what can happen when hazards are invisible,” said Joe Kramek, President and CEO of the World Shipping Council. “Batteries shipped under the exemption have caused serious container fires, putting people, ports, ships and the marine environment at risk. . . . As battery shipments continue to grow, we need a better solution that makes these cargoes visible and allows the risks to be properly managed.”
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In a past example, a 40-foot container full of battery-powered flashlights caught fire on the deck of the boxship X-Press Godavari in September 2020 and burned for more than three days, even after it was offloaded onto the pier. It had likely overheated during transport as deck cargo in 86 F weather, likely exacerbated by exposure to direct sunlight in its stowage location, The ambient air temperature was already at the safe upper storage limit recommended by the OEM, and the prolonged exposure to sunlight contravened the manufacturer's recommendations. The 7,000-kilo cumulative mass of Li-ion batteries inside the cargo likely ignited as a result. The cargo met the rules of SP188 and was not declared as a dangerous-goods shipment, as allowed by the exception in the IMDG Code; but had the operator been notified, the container would likely have been stowed appropriately and the fire might not have occurred.
To address the issue, the WSC has submitted a proposal to the IMO to put a limit on the maximum weight or capacity of batteries that are acceptable in a given container under the SP188 exemption. Past that level, the battery packs would have to be declared. The proposal comes up for review next week at the next meeting of the Sub-Committee on Carriage of Cargoes and Containers.
