Fire during new product testing of Powin batteries in Tualatin, Oregon
EIR-0666Provisional entry. Confirmed: a fire occurred during new-product testing of six lithium iron phosphate battery cells manufactured by Powin Energy at a warehouse in Tualatin, Oregon on 11 April 2019, per the EPRI BESS Failure Incident Database. Not yet confirmed: the scale of the fire, emergency response, any injuries, and downtime, as no full report or news article has been located. No further update is scheduled; the entry stays provisional until new information is published.
A fire broke out during a new product test of six large lithium-ion battery cells at a warehouse in Tualatin, Oregon, United States, on 11 April 2019. The cells used lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistry and were manufactured by Powin. The system architecture was indoor and the batteries had zero years of prior operational history, indicating the fire occurred during initial testing rather than in-service use. The application was categorised as manufacturing and testing rather than a commissioned energy storage installation. No further details on the scale of the fire, emergency response, injuries, or resulting downtime were disclosed in the available source material.
Not reported by the source.
- New product testing of lithium-ion battery cells carries fire risk even before commercial deployment or extended operational history.
- Indoor testing facilities handling battery cells should have fire detection and suppression systems appropriate to the chemistry and scale being tested.
- Manufacturers should treat pre-commissioning and factory acceptance testing with the same rigour as in-service safety protocols, since failures can occur at any stage of a battery's lifecycle.
Published 2026-09-11. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.