Nokia warns on BL-5C Battery Overheating

The world's top cell phone maker Nokia said on Tuesday 46 million batteries used in its phones could overheat and the company would replace them for no cost to consumers. Nokia said the Nokia-branded "BL-5C" batteries were made by Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd. between December 2005 and November 2006. The "BL-5C" is Nokia's most widely used battery, and several suppliers have made more than 300 million of them for Nokia. Nokia has issued a product advisory for the Nokia-branded BL-5C battery manufactured by Matsushita Battery Industrial Co. Ltd. of Japan between December 2005 and November 2006. However, this product advisory is only for this particular product and does not apply to any other Nokia-branded battery.

Nokia has stated that in very few instances, the Nokia-branded BL-5C batteries subject to the product advisory could potentially face overheating initiated by a short circuit while charging, causing the battery to dislodge. Currently, Nokia is working closely with Matsushita and will be working with appropriate authorities to examine this situation.

Nokia has a number of suppliers for BL-5C batteries who have jointly created over 300 million BL-5C batteries. This advisory applies only to the 46 million batteries manufactured by Matsushita between December 2005 and November 2006, from which there have been around 100 incidents of overheating reported globally. No serious injuries or property damage have been reported. Users with a BL-5C battery subject to this advisory should keep in mind that all of the around 100 incidents have taken place when the user was charging the battery. Nokia maintains that this problem does not have an ill effect of any other use of the mobile device.

Consumers can get their Nokia BL-5C batteries replaced subject to this product advisory.

Shares in Nokia dipped on the news and were 1.2 percent lower at 22.35 euros by 0831 GMT. Nokia said replacing millions of batteries would have some direct costs and financial impact to it, but Matsushita would pay part of the costs. "Matsushita will cover certain costs," said Marianne Holmlund, spokeswoman for Nokia.

Matsushita said there had been a rare problem in the manufacturing process, noting the cost of it was still uncertain. "We are still in discussion with Nokia about how to divide the replacement cost," said Matsushita spokesman Akira Kadota. "At this moment, we cannot calculate what the effect will be on earnings," he said.

Nokia said 100 overheating cases of batteries in question have been recorded globally, but no serious injuries were reported. "The batteries could potentially experience overheating initiated by a short circuit while charging, causing the battery to dislodge," Nokia said in a statement. Nokia said it issued a product advisory to consumers based on preliminary findings of an ongoing investigation and it hopes the warning would not hurt its brand. The BL-5C batteries which are subject to the product advisory were used with the following Nokia models or separately as accessories:

Nokia 1100, Nokia 1100c, Nokia 1101, Nokia 1108, Nokia 1110, Nokia 1112, Nokia 1255, Nokia 1315, Nokia 1600, Nokia 2112, Nokia 2118, Nokia 2255, Nokia 2272, Nokia 2275, Nokia 2300, Nokia 2300c, Nokia 2310, Nokia 2355, Nokia 2600, Nokia 2610, Nokia 2610b, Nokia 2626, Nokia 3100, Nokia 3105, Nokia 3120, Nokia 3125, Nokia 6030, Nokia 6085, Nokia 6086, Nokia 6108, Nokia 6175i, Nokia 6178i, Nokia 6230, Nokia 6230i, Nokia 6270, Nokia 6600, Nokia 6620, Nokia 6630, Nokia 6631, Nokia 6670, Nokia 6680, Nokia 6681, Nokia 6682, Nokia 6820, Nokia 6822, Nokia 7610, Nokia N70, Nokia N71, Nokia N72, Nokia N91, Nokia E50, Nokia E60

So open and check the battery right now. The Nokia battery will have Nokia and BL-5C printed on the front of the battery. On the reverse, the Nokia mark appears at the top and the battery identification number (consisting of 26 characters) is found at the bottom. Consumers should refer to this identification number to decide if their battery is among the batteries manufactured by Matsushita between December 2005 and November 2006. A comparison of that number with those subject to this advisory will determine a consumer's ability to obtain a replacement free of charge.

"By reacting swiftly and responsibly, and by being fully transparent, we believe that consumers will continue to view Nokia as a responsible and trustworthy brand," Robert Andersson, head of customer and market operations at Nokia.

About the BL-5C Battery

The BL-5C is one of 14 different battery models used in Nokia products. As with many of its components, Nokia has a multi-supplier strategy for batteries, including the BL-5C. Matsushita is one of several suppliers Nokia has for the BL-5C battery.