A series of explosions caused a large fire to break out at a battery recycling plant in North Ayrshire, Scotland on 9 April. The incident happened almost exactly a year after the factory, owned by Fenix Battery Recycling, was largely destroyed in another fire which took several days to extinguish.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) said in a statement that it was alerted to a fire within a recycling centre on Byrehill Place, Kilwinning at 12:42 local time. At the height of the fire, the SFRS said it mobilised 10 fire appliances plus specialist resources, including specialist HAZMAT units due to the presence of potentially hazardous fumes.
The fire service advised the public to remain indoors and to keep windows and doors closed while some nearby properties were evacuated as a precautionary measure. On 10 April, the SFRS confirmed the fire had been extinguished although one fire appliance remained on scene as firefighters continued to dampen the site down and monitor for hot spots.
Footage taken by local residents and posted on social media showed a significant fire at the recycling plant in scenes which were reminiscent of a fire at the same site just 12 months previously.
The incident occurred one year after a series of explosions and fires largely destroyed the Fenix Battery Recycling plant in Kilwinning. During that incident, firefighters tackled a blaze which started on 8 April 2024 and lasted for several days. At its height, around 40 firefighters and six fire engines were mobilised to the scene after the alarm was raised. There were no reported casualties as a result of the incident, however a number of nearby buildings were evacuated, and locals were told to remain indoors with windows and doors closed.
Fenix has a history of Enforcement Notices with the site’s licence also being partially suspended in November 2023 after failure to comply with a notice to reduce the amount of batteries on the site classed as special waste under The Special Waste Regulations 1996 to the authorised tonnage.
A further Notice regarding the breach of the time limit conditions for battery storage was being prepared by SEPA at the time of the 2024 fire.
It is not known whether Fenix had complied with the Enforcement Notices by the time of the second fire and explosions on 9 April 2025.
