Fire halts Li-ion battery production at Matsushita plant

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. has stopped the production of Li-ion batteries at a factory in Osaka, Japan after a fire broke out over the weekend, according to a report in Bloomberg.com.

There were no reported injuries in the accident and the cause of the fire is currently being investigated by the city fire department, said the report.

Company spokesman Yoshihide Sato said in the report that the fire destroyed most of the third floor of the factory in Moriguchi City. The affected production capacity is still undetermined.

On Aug. 14, Matsushita announced that it will cover the costs related to the August 14 product advisory on overheating Nokia-branded BL-5C batteries.