10:28 am, August 3, 2023
A fire which broke out on a freight ship carrying almost 3,000 new cars could end up costing north of $330m (£260m), an expert has warned.
The Fremantle Highway had been en route to Egypt from Germany when it caught fire last Wednesday (July 26), killing one crew member and injuring others.
Car Dealer reported over the weekend that there were a total of 3,783 new vehicles on board including 498 electric vehicles.
Those figures exceeded previous numbers, which had estimated that the K Line vessel was carrying 2,857 cars, including 25 EVs.
Now, a specialist has warned that the financial implications of the blaze are set to be astronomical.
Economist Patrick Anderson told Automotive News Europe that it is likely to result in a six figure cargo loss.
He said: ‘It does appear after multiple days of fire that it is likely that all of the cars are a total loss and be very difficult to salvage any vehicles out of this.
‘Certainly no vehicle that endured that fire damage and water damage can be sold as new in the United States.’
Since the fire, the Fremantle Highway has been towed away from shipping lanes as specialists try to salvage what they can from the wreck.
The incident follows a similar fire last year when the Felicity Ace went up in flames off the Azores as it carried 4,000 cars to the US.
In that instance, the vessel eventually sank after crew members were evacuated via emergency helicopter.
Anderson, whose runs the Michigan-based Anderson Economic Group, says that as carrier ships transport more EVs, the likelihood of fire will continue to rise.
He added: ‘There needs to be a serious, immediate effort to look at safety of these carriers that are holding electric vehicles, because now we have a second half-billion-dollar loss, and tragically, we have loss of life, too.
Pictured at top: Smoke and flames are seen on the car freight ship Fremantle Highway. Image credit: Kustwacht Nederland/Coastguard Netherlands via AP
