Six fire engines at new Wolverhampton battery recycling factory

BBC LiBatt Recycling Ltd site - generic imageBBC
The fire happened at LiBatt Recycling Ltd in Wolverhampton

More than 20 firefighters have tackled a blaze at a newly-opened battery recycling plant.

West Midlands Fire Service said half of the LiBatt Recycling Ltd factory in Wolverhampton was damaged by smoke.

Fire damage was limited to a pallet of lithium-ion batteries weighing about 130kg (20stones), after the blaze started after 21:30 BST on Wednesday.

Nobody was hurt and the plant on Lincoln Street reopened on Thursday as normal, the company said.

It added the fire was contained within one of seven bays used to store batteries before processing and was separate to the recycling plant.

Cause investigated

There was no damage to the other six bays and the blaze was contained within 40 minutes.

No other buildings or the plant were affected and there were no delays, the firm said.

The company's "fire safety management protocols worked successfully as confirmed by the emergency services", according to a statement.

Six fire engines, from Wolverhampton, Bilston, Willenhall and Dudley, were at the scene.

The cause of the blaze was being investigated, the fire service said earlier.

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