Battery fire at KEPCO Gyeongsan Substation energy storage site
May 2018Published 11 Sept 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor
- Where
- KEPCO Gyeongsan Substation, Gyeongsan-si, South Korea
- Operator
- Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO)
- What
- Fire in lithium ion BESS for frequency regulation
- Injuries
- None reported
- Response
- Firefighters controlled blaze in two and a half hours
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Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): Korea Electric Power
What happened
On the evening of 2 May 2018, a fire broke out at the KEPCO Gyeongsan Substation, operated by Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), in Jinryang-eup, Gyeongsan-si, North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. The fire involved a lithium ion battery energy storage system used for frequency regulation, reported to be about 1.8 years old at the time. More than 100 charging facilities and batteries were burned. Firefighters brought the blaze under control within two and a half hours.
No injuries or fatalities were reported. The fire department made an initial damage estimate, and police opened an investigation into the cause. No further details on the root cause were available at the time of reporting.
Contributing factors
Not reported in the source. Police investigation into the cause was ongoing at the time of the article.
Lessons learned
- A lithium ion BESS fire spread to more than 100 units, so operators must fit barriers between racks and install early thermal detection.
- Firefighters took two and a half hours to control the blaze, so remote isolation and debris exclusion zones must be pre-planned for outdoor sites.
More lessons on detection and monitoring, fire suppression and firefighting, from every incident on the register.
Not yet known
- Root cause of the fire
- Battery model and manufacturer
- Cost of the damage
- Duration of site downtime
This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.
Source
Published 2026-09-11. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.
