AML halting shipments of electric vehicles to Southeast Alaska starting Sept. 1

Concern about fire risk also means lithium-ion batteries won’t be shipped separately for existing vehicles

A Coast Guard C-130J Super Hercules aircrew from Air Station Kodiak conducts an overflight of a fire aboard the cargo vessel Morning Midas approximately 300 miles south of Adak on June 3, 2025. All 22 crew members were rescued by the crew of motor vessel Cosco Hellas with no reported injuries. (U.S. Coast Guard photo courtesy of Air Station Kodiak)

By Mark Sabbatini

Juneau Independent

Alaska Marine Lines will stop shipping electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles to Southeast Alaska as of Sept. 1 due to safety concerns, according to the company.

The change doesn’t apply to hybrid vehicles that don’t plug in, an Aug. 12 announcement states. The decision is due to "the increased complexity and fire risk associated with shipping large lithium-ion batteries on vessels at sea."

"While issues with lithium-ion batteries are infrequent, the inability to extinguish or contain this type of fire, especially while at sea, can lead to catastrophic results," the company’s statement notes. "We will continue to reassess our ability to safely ship these vehicles as industry standards and safety procedures improve."

The policy also applies to a broader region — including other Alaska regions, Hawaii and the West Coast — served by AML’s parent company, Lynden Inc. Shipment to those other areas were halted when the announcement was published.

The potential risk of shipping such vehicles got widespread attention in June when a cargo ship carrying nearly 700 hybrid and 70 fully-electric vehicles caught fire about 300 southwest of Adak. The ship burned for days before capsizing and sinking.

Kody Richardson, managing partner at Juneau Auto Mall, said in an interview Wednesday he is still trying to determine the full implications of the shipping restrictions since manufacturers coordinate shipments of new vehicles to his dealerships.

"We talked to a couple of them and they're going back to their drawing board, and I'm sure there's conversations happening between them and AML, and they'll loop us in on that," he said. "But at this point, we are planning that any EVs that we have in the pipeline that are not here yet will probably not get to us, and they'll have to redirect those to other dealers."

However, shipments of used vehicles are coordinated by Juneau Auto Mall so "we will not be bringing any more used EVs up here until something changes in our ability to transport them," Richardson said.

He said EVs and plug-in hybrids are less than 10% of his company’s new vehicle sales. Hybrid vehicles that don’t plug in account for about 40% to 50% of new sales, and he hopes that the loss of other EV types can be offset by these vehicles.

A bigger concern is maintenance work on EVs and plug-in hybrids since AML is also halting shipments of lithium-ion batteries themselves, Richardson said.

"There's recalls on batteries that need to be replaced and I don't know how the manufacturers are going to send us the batteries," he said. "So I think that's probably a greater uncertainty — how are we going to provide the level of service we need to our customers if we can't get the parts here that we need to work on their cars?"

It is still possible to send EVs and plug-in hybrids on Alaska Marine Highway System ferries, but the state has had a limit of two such vehicles per sailing since April 2024.

• Contact Mark Sabbatini at editor@juneauindependent.com or (907) 957-2306.