Nearly 500 electric cars are on cargo ship ablaze off Dutch coast

The car carrier burning off the Dutch coast since Tuesday night is carrying nearly 500 electric vehicles, ship charter company K Line said on Friday, significantly more than the 25 initially reported by the coastguard.

The fire on the Panamanian-registered Fremantle Highway resulted in the death of an Indian crew member and injury of seven others who jumped overboard to escape the flames.

There were 3,783 vehicles on board, including 498 battery electric vehicles, said a Tokyo-based spokesperson for K Line (Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha), which had chartered the vessel.

He declined to say anything about the car brands, including whether or not it included any cars from Japanese manufacturers.

BMW and Mercedes-Benz said they have cars among the cargo aboard the ship.

The Dutch coastguard said on its website Thursday that the cause of the fire was unknown, but an emergency responder is heard in a recording released by Dutch broadcaster RTL saying "the fire started in the battery of an electric car."

Whether EVs had anything to do with precipitating the blaze, the number on board is relevant to what’s likely to be a days-long effort to put it out. Lithium-ion battery fires burn hotter and last longer than gasoline. They can also be difficult to extinguish, sometimes reigniting hours or days after seemingly having been put out.

The fire has lessened in intensity and salvagers have been able to board the ship to secure stronger tow lines, authorities said on Friday.

An investigation has been launched by the Panama Maritime Authority and the Netherlands is assisting the inquiry, the Dutch Safety Board has said.

There are several hundred BMW and Mini cars on board, as well as roughly 300 Mercedes-Benz vehicles, representatives for the automakers said.

Ford Motor, Stellantis, Renault and Nissan did not have any vehicles on the vessel, company spokespeople said. Toyota said it’s unlikely the automaker had cargo on board.

A Volkswagen spokesperson said the company was actively investigating but was unable to provide further information. Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.

The 199-meter (653 ft) Fremantle is drifting among islands about 17 km from the northernmost Dutch coast. It was on the way from Germany to Egypt. The islands comprise part of the Wadden Sea, a vast area of tidal flats and marshland stretching along Germany and Denmark that is on UNESCO's World Heritage list.

The incident is reminiscent of a maritime disaster last year, when a cargo ship that caught fire in the Atlantic transporting roughly 4,000 VW vehicles to the U.S. sank in rough seas, despite efforts to tow it to safety after burning for more than a week.

Bloomberg contributed to this report