Burning Ship Now Under Control, Losses Could Top $400M

The fire ravaging the Felicity Ace cargo ship, which carries nearly 4,000 U.S.-bound Volkswagen AG vehicles and is still adrift around 170 km southwest of the Azores near Portugal, has lost its intensity and is now under control according to the ship’s owner and local port authorities. However, bad weather and rough waters are delaying the salvage operation.

The good news is that the worst has been avoided from an environmental standpoint, and no oil spill has being reported so far. The bad news? There may be little left to burn inside.

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With the help of the Portuguese air force, salvage teams will try to board the ship when the conditions are safe in order to assess its condition and start preparing it for towing—either to the Bahamas or back to Europe. A gaping hole at least four decks high has been spotted.

The cause of the fire remains unknown. The lithium-ion batteries in the many electric vehicles on the Felicity Ace have given firefighting crews a hard time. Specialist equipment had to be brought in.

Around 1,100 Porsches and 189 Bentleys are on board, spokespeople for the two brands have confirmed. There’s also a large number of Volkswagen (Golf GTI, Golf R, Arteon, ID.4), Audi and Lamborghini models, but no Bugatti.

There’s no indication that some of these vehicles were headed for Canada after their trip across the Atlantic.

Lamborghini of America CEO Andrea Baldi told Automotive News that dozens of pre-sold Urus, Huracan and Aventador models are part of the cargo. The Aventador recently came to the end of its life, so it’s possible Lamborghini will have to resume production to replace lost units.

Per Bloomberg, risk-modeling company Russell Group estimated Monday there are $401 million USD worth of cars on the ship. Volkswagen is reportedly looking at the biggest loss, roughly $155 million USD.