A fire at PG&E’s Tesla-supplied Elkhorn Battery energy storage system at Moss Landing, California, is considered fully controlled and road closures and shelter-in-place advisories have been lifted.
A statement from the County of Monterey authority, where the system is located, said that a fire at the plant started at 2am local time on 20 September (yesterday).
The fire was isolated to a single battery pack and led to the closure of Highway 1 from Molera to Jensen Road and local residents were advised to shelter in place with windows closed, due to the risk of hazardous materials.
A statement later that evening, 7.18 pm local time, said the incident was considered fully controlled and the North County Fire Department and Monterey County Sheriff’s Office had lifted the shelter in place advice and all road closures due to the incident, effective 6.50 pm.
The statement added that smoke could still occur and residents were being advised to remain vigilant.
CNBC quoted a captain of the fire department who said it was too early to know the cause of the incident.
It is not to be confused with the Moss Landing Energy Storage Facility, a 400MW/1,600MWh BESS which is located at the same site but is an entirely separate system owned by Vistra Energy, but also providing power to PG&E. That project came back online in July after several months offline due to an overheating incident.