Solar and Wind Power Plant ESS Fires
Key Issue: Whether Battery Defects Are the Cause
[Asia Economy Reporters Moon Chaeseok and Kim Hyewon] The second investigation team for energy storage system (ESS) fire accidents held a final meeting on the afternoon of the 15th and is confirmed to plan to announce the final investigation report by the 23rd after legal review and other procedures. Depending on the investigation results, the impact on the domestic battery industry is expected to be significant. It is known that the investigation team is engaged in a last-minute dispute over the responsibility of battery companies.
According to members of the second investigation team and insiders familiar with the matter, the team held its final meeting at 1 p.m. in Gangnam on the day and plans to announce the investigation results before the 23rd after final legal review of the report wording and schedule coordination with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
The investigation targets five ESS fires that occurred between August 30 and October 27 of last year. According to the office of Jeong Yooseop, a member of the Liberty Korea Party, three solar power plants in Yesan, Chungnam; Gunwi, Gyeongbuk; and Hadong, Gyeongnam, where fires broke out, used batteries from LG Chem, while two other sites?the wind power plant in Pyeongchang, Gangwon, and the solar power plant in Gimhae, Gyeongnam?used batteries from Samsung SDI.
The key issue is whether the cause of the fires will be concluded as battery defects. According to insiders, the investigation team found battery defects in some of the five fire cases. Among these, the fire that occurred on October 27 last year in Gimhae, Gyeongnam, is the core issue. The investigation team has tentatively concluded it was due to battery defects, but since the supplier Samsung SDI strongly presented their defense the day before, there is a possibility the conclusion may be overturned. The fire in Pyeongchang, Gangwon, which occurred on September 24, is likely to be announced as 'cause unknown due to total burn.'
Previously, the government formed a public-private joint investigation committee for 23 ESS fires that occurred from August 2, 2017, to May 26 of last year, and announced the accident cause investigation results and safety reinforcement measures on June 11 of last year. At that time, the committee pointed out four factors including insufficient battery protection systems but stated that battery cell defects themselves were not the cause of the fires.
However, as fires continued afterward, the government formed the second investigation team in mid-October last year. The second investigation team consists of a total of 20 members: five from academia, four from research institutes, two from testing research institutes, three from the National Assembly, two from the Fire Agency, three from academic societies and organizations, and one from other sectors.
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