Porsche Wins Felicity Ace Lawsuit as Cause of Fire Remains Unproven

Porsche has won a key legal battle stemming from the loss of the car carrier Felicity Ace, with a German court reportedly rejecting claims that a Porsche Taycan battery caused the fire that ultimately destroyed the vessel and nearly 4,000 vehicles.

According to German legal news outlet LTO (Legal Tribune Online), the Regional Court of Stuttgart dismissed a lawsuit seeking approximately €30 million ($34 million) in damages from Porsche. The plaintiffs, which included the Japanese owner of the vessel and five marine hull insurers, alleged that a self-igniting lithium-ion battery in a Porsche Taycan sparked the February 2022 fire aboard the vessel.

LTO reported that the court found the plaintiffs failed to prove that a Porsche vehicle was the source of the blaze. The burden of proof rested with the plaintiffs, and the court was ultimately not convinced that a Taycan battery caused the fire.

The Panama-flagged Felicity Ace, operated by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), caught fire on February 16, 2022, while sailing approximately 90 nautical miles southwest of the Azores on a voyage from Emden, Germany, to the United States.

All 22 crewmembers were safely evacuated, but the fire continued to burn for nearly two weeks before the vessel sank on March 1, 2022. The ship was carrying nearly 4,000 vehicles, including Porsche, Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini and Volkswagen models. More than 100 Porsche Taycan electric vehicles were reportedly among the cargo.

The casualty quickly became one of the maritime industry’s most closely watched vehicle-carrier disasters, fueling debate about the risks associated with transporting lithium-ion battery-powered vehicles at sea.

However, despite years of speculation, the cause of the fire has never been publicly established. The Panama Maritime Authority submitted its investigation report to the International Maritime Organization in 2022, but the report has not been publicly released.

According to LTO, the Stuttgart ruling is not yet final and may be appealed.

The legal battle is also far from over. LTO reported that a separate lawsuit remains pending before the Regional Court of Braunschweig, where plaintiffs are seeking damages in the hundreds of millions of euros from Porsche and Volkswagen Group logistics entities.

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