Battery storage fire at Koryo Steel plant in Yangsan, South Korea

A fire broke out at approximately 7:31 a.m. at the energy storage system (ESS) installed at the Koryo Steel plant in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. The ESS was used for peak demand reduction at the steel plant. Fire services responded and the blaze was extinguished around 11:16 a.m., more than four hours after ignition. According to the report, this was the third fire at this peak-shaving ESS installation, following earlier incidents in July and December of the previous year. The battery was supplied by LG Chem, the power conditioning system by Destin Power, and installation was carried out by LG CNS. A company representative stated the plant did not rely entirely on the ESS and that operations would not be disrupted.

The source does not state a confirmed root cause. It notes this was the third fire at the same ESS installation within roughly six months, suggesting a recurring or unresolved issue with the system.

1. Repeated fire incidents at the same energy storage installation should trigger a thorough root cause investigation before returning the system to service.
2. Operators should not treat repeat failures as isolated events; recurring incidents indicate a systemic issue requiring escalation.
3. Industrial sites using ESS for peak demand management should maintain backup operational capability independent of the storage system in case of shutdown.

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