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A Canary Media analysis of data from the Electric Power Research Institute and battery-installation tallies found the U.S. grid-battery failure rate in 2025 was more than 97% lower than in 2016, while cumulative deployments had grown 250-fold. The figures track reported failures, not the severity of each incident, and EPRI says the limited number of events constrains what can be concluded.
The annual failure rate for U.S. grid batteries fell more than 97% from 2016 to 2025, even as cumulative deployments rose 250-fold, according to a Canary Media analysis of failure data compiled by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). The finding offers communities weighing new battery projects evidence that reported failures have become less frequent as the industry expanded, though it does not show that every incident is minor or that future projects carry no fire risk.
The analysis compares EPRI’s tally of reported failures involving commercial and grid-scale batteries with U.S. installation data compiled by the Solar Energy Industries Association and Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. The failure category includes arc flashes, fires and explosions. The reported annual rate fell sharply over the period even as the total amount of installed battery storage grew substantially. In three years within the past decade, the dataset recorded no known failures.
Those zero-failure years are part of the reported record, not proof that such equipment cannot fail. The source article says improvements in safety standards, battery systems and project layouts have accompanied the decline. It also notes that safety rules differ between countries, which is one reason the U.S. figures should be considered separately from global data.
The count does not measure how large or harmful each event was. A fire at a battery installation near Phoenix in 2019 sent four emergency responders to hospital with serious injuries, according to the source report. In January 2025, a major fire at California’s Moss Landing facility largely destroyed the power plant and led to a multi-day evacuation of nearby residents, but no injuries were reported. The two incidents show why a lower failure rate does not, by itself, describe the consequences when a serious event occurs.
How Lower Failure Rates Affect Siting
Battery installations can store electricity and supply it when demand rises or other power sources are unavailable. Their expansion therefore matters to grid reliability and electricity costs, as well as to local decisions about land use, emergency planning and public safety. Fire concerns have become a point of resistance in some communities considering new projects.
EPRI’s comparison, as reported by Canary Media, puts battery-unit failures at a rate comparable to failures of oil-filled substation transformers, established equipment used to change electricity voltage. That comparison can help place battery risks alongside familiar grid infrastructure, but it does not mean the technologies have identical hazards or that every site presents the same risk. The source report says communities may weigh potential safety concerns against possible benefits such as tax revenue, more reliable power and downward pressure on bills.
Public attention is not necessarily proportional to how often equipment fails. Battery fires can be difficult to extinguish using conventional methods, and prominent incidents such as Moss Landing can shape perceptions of projects well beyond the affected site. More precise data may help local officials and residents discuss both the frequency and consequences of failures rather than relying on either reassurance or a single dramatic example.
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A Rapidly Growing Battery Fleet
The figures come amid rapid growth in U.S. grid-scale energy storage. The source report describes batteries as the country’s leading choice for new on-demand grid power and says cumulative deployments in the analysis increased 250-fold between 2016 and 2025. As the technology has spread, battery fires and the difficulty of controlling some of them have prompted scrutiny from communities considering proposed installations.
EPRI’s report covers global failures, while Canary Media’s analysis compares the U.S. portion with domestic deployment figures. That distinction matters: the article says countries vary in their development rules and safety standards. The U.S. trend is therefore not a simple measure of risk everywhere, and the data does not establish which specific changes caused the rate to fall.
The source report identifies newer safety standards, more sophisticated battery designs and changes to project layouts as developments that have accompanied improved performance. It also notes that public scrutiny of battery projects is more visible than scrutiny of long-established transformers and substation upgrades, even though EPRI’s calculated failure rates are comparable.
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What the Failure Data Cannot Show
The source report describes the dataset as a small sample, because relatively few failures have been recorded. Srinivasan said that makes it difficult to analyze the data robustly. The reported rate is a measure of recorded failures relative to deployments; it is not a forecast of the likelihood of a fire at any particular site.
The tally also does not capture the size, duration or severity of each event. A minor incident and a fire that destroys a facility can both appear in a count of failures, despite very different effects on workers, emergency responders and surrounding residents. The source material does not provide a full event-by-event breakdown or enough detail to compare the risk by battery chemistry, facility design or location.
It is also not clear from the provided data how much of the decline is attributable to new safety standards, equipment changes, project layouts or other factors. The comparison with transformers is useful as a reference point, but the source does not establish that the hazards or consequences are equivalent. Reported failures are not evidence that unreported incidents never occurred.
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How Communities May Use the Findings
The data may inform ongoing local debates over proposed battery installations, where residents and officials can compare reported failure frequency with the potential benefits of storage and the consequences of a serious incident. The source report does not identify a specific upcoming regulatory decision or new national safety rule tied to the analysis.
Better tracking would help clarify whether the downward trend continues as more projects enter service and whether changes in equipment and site design are associated with fewer or less severe events. EPRI’s warning about the small dataset points to the limits of drawing firm conclusions from a low number of incidents. For now, the reported figures support a narrower finding: the U.S. annual failure rate declined substantially through 2025 while deployments expanded, but the data does not resolve the risk at an individual site or the potential harm from a rare major fire.
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Key Questions
How much did the U.S. grid-battery failure rate fall?
The Canary Media analysis found that the annual rate in 2025 was more than 97% below the 2016 rate. Cumulative deployments rose 250-fold over the same period. The source does not present that percentage as a guarantee about future incidents.
What counts as a battery failure in the data?
EPRI’s tally includes reported arc flashes, fires and explosions involving commercial and grid-scale batteries. The tally counts failures but does not fully describe how severe each event was.
Does the finding mean grid batteries are fireproof?
No. The data show a lower reported failure rate over time, not an absence of risk. The source report describes serious incidents, including injuries to emergency responders near Phoenix in 2019 and the Moss Landing fire in January 2025.
How reliable is the comparison with transformers?
EPRI calculated that grid-battery units fail at a rate comparable to oil-filled transformers, according to the source report. That is a comparison of failure rates, not proof that the equipment has identical hazards or consequences. EPRI’s lead author also cautioned that the small number of battery failures limits analysis.
What remains unknown about the decline?
The provided material does not establish which changes caused the decline or show how risk varies by battery design, chemistry and location. The failure tally also does not provide a full measure of each event’s severity.
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