Mayor: Plant should not have been operating ahead of fire

Following last month’s fire at a battery storage facility in the Village of Warwick, Mayor Michael Newhard said the company operating the facility had not been in compliance with the village.

“The village has no financial or contractual relationship with Convergent Energy and Power,” he said. “The village had not been notified by Convergent that the system had been activated and fully charged at the time of the [fire]. Convergent does not currently hold a certificate of compliance and the facility should not have been operational.”

The facility is located on private property within a light industrial zoning district and received land use approval in 2021. Though the cause of the fire has not officially been determined, officials believe it occurred because of water infiltrating the battery system, which is what caused a 2023 fire at Convergent’s Route 1 facility on school district property in the Town of Warwick and a simultaneous overheating event at the Church Street location in the village.

Newhard said efforts to bring Convergent into compliance following the 2023 events were met with hostility from the company.

“After the 2023 incidents, we decided we needed to take a strong look at that certificate of compliance and when we did the village board made requests in terms of safety concerns and precautions and Convergent dismissed them,” said the mayor. “Until this fire, it was not clear they were charging these batteries [because] they are on private property. At the same time, they did not have the certificate of compliance and that puts them in a precarious position legally.”

When asked via email to comment on the compliance issue and the company’s relationship with the village, Convergent said the following:

“We apologize for the disruption and concern this has caused and plan to continue to update the community as we are able. Convergent has been and will continue to be in regular contact with village personnel regarding the system’s status and remains committed to a constructive and collaborative relationship with Mayor Newhard and the Village of Warwick.”

Dec. 19 fire

According to a statement released by Newhard, village officials were notified of the lithium-ion battery fire at approximately 10:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 19, at the Convergent Energy and Power battery energy storage facility at 28 Church St. Extension. The fire was contained to a single battery cell. The Warwick Fire Department secured the site and began coordinating with the Orange County Hazardous Materials Response Team.

Initial, air quality testing showed no hazardous air-quality levels. Lithium-ion battery fires cannot be extinguished with water and must be allowed to burn out. Therefore, continuous air monitoring was critical. Over the more than 48-hour duration of the incident, no hazardous air-quality levels were observed in point-in-time readings. A formal report of this testing, including the complete data set, has been requested by the village and will be shared once received.

Moving forward

Newhard said Convergent’s system has been disconnected from the power grid, internally disengaged and tarped, and damaged battery removal is anticipated with a full investigative report to follow.

In the near term, the village is taking the following steps:

• Requiring Convergent Energy and Power to bear all costs associated with cleanup, testing, engineering, and police services.

• Enforcing a notice of violation and condemnation order issued by the building department.

• Pursuing additional environmental testing to ensure public safety.

• Retaining an independent consulting engineer for third-party review.

• Continuing to press for accountability regarding unauthorized operation of the facility.