California: Massive Fire Erupts at Major Battery Plant

By Staff, Agencies

A fire has erupted at a battery storage facility in the US state of California, one of the largest in the world, triggering the evacuation of hundreds of people.

Vistra Energy, which owns the natural gas-fueled Moss Landing Power Plant and adjoining lithium-ion battery facility on the Monterey County coast, said a fire had broken out in one of its batteries on Thursday afternoon.

The company added that it had evacuated on-site personnel, while Jenny Lyon, a spokesman for Vistra, stated that “the cause of the fire has not yet been determined, but an investigation will begin once the fire is extinguished.”

Firefighters are awaiting the fire to extinguish itself, as reported by KSBW8 news, and its duration remains unknown.

The fire triggered the closure of three road, including Highway 1, and Monterey County spokesman Nicholas Pasculli said evacuations of nearly 1,500 people were ordered for several areas.

The Moss Landing Power Plant, containing numerous lithium batteries for renewable energy storage, faces potential fire hazards due to their high fire risk.

Thursday’s fire was the latest to engulf the Vistra plant. In 2021 and 2022, blazes were sparked in Moss Landing battery complex caused by a malfunction in a fire sprinkler system that resulted in some units overheating.