July 27, 2023: A cargo ship carrying 2,857 vehicles — of which some 25 were EVs —  is ablaze off the Dutch coast today with initial reports suggesting that the cause of the fire was the battery in one of the EVs.

The fire has claimed the life of one crew member and injured several others.

The Netherlands Coastguard confirmed today that 23 crew members had been rescued in the latest incident — some having jumped into the sea from the Fremantle Highway, which had left Germany and was heading to Singapore via Egypt.

Dutch news outlet NOS and Reuters quoted a coastguard spokesman as saying the fire originated near where the EVs were stowed. The coastguard says, however, the exact cause of the fire has yet to be determined.

The incident comes months after Norwegian shipping company Havila Kystruten announced it was banning EVs, hybrids and hydrogen vehicles on its ferries because of a potential fire hazard.

As of this morning, Fremantle Highway remains tethered to the salvage vessel Hunter — 16km off the Dutch island of Ameland — to prevent the burning vessel from drifting.

The coastguard has warned it was too dangerous for firefighters to board the ship as yet and water used to try and extinguish the blaze could destabilize the vessel.

A coastguard plane is set to fly over the Fremantle Highway today to assess the situation.

The coastguard said it was not yet known what had caused the unnamed crew member’s death.

The Japanese owner of the Panama-registered Fremantle Highway, Shoei Kisen, confirmed yesterday that the blaze started at around 23.45 local time on July 25.

The company said it was cooperating with rescue agencies and ship management firm Wallem Shipmanagement to try and extinguish the fire, but the situation remains “extremely difficult”.

As yet, Shoei Kisen said it had no information about whether oil or other pollutants were leaking from the stricken ship.

The Fremantle Highway incident comes less than 18 months after the Felicity Ace sank in the Atlantic after a suspected EV battery fire with some 4,000 vehicles on board.

That ship’s owner told Energy Storage Journal last March that the vessel will likely never be recovered.