Porsche faces accusations for the catastrophic fire aboard a cargo ship carrying electric vehicles, with lawsuits being filed against the Volkswagen Group.

Volkswagen Group is facing two separate lawsuits in connection with a fire that led to the sinking of a roll-on roll-off cargo ship. In February 2022, the Felicity Ace caught fire while near the Azores, ultimately sinking with an estimated loss of at least $236 million. The ship, carrying 3,965 luxury vehicles from Germany to the United States, belonged to Volkswagen Group, featuring brands such as Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini, Bentley, Bugatti, and Volkswagen.

Initially, the cause of the fire was uncertain. However, recent reports from Bloomberg indicate that blame is being attributed to Porsche, with plaintiffs pointing to the lithium-ion battery of a Porsche model as the source of the fire. Among the plaintiffs are the ship’s operator, Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd., and German insurer Allianz SE, who have filed a lawsuit in Stuttgart, where Volkswagen’s Porsche unit is headquartered. Volkswagen Group is overseen by Porsche SE, which is controlled by the Porsche-Piëch family.

Additionally, another lawsuit has been filed in Braunschweig, a city in central Germany.