China Takes Measures to Enhance Lithium Battery Safe Transport

It indicates a trend toward stricter and more standardized management for lithium battery transport.

On September 19, 2024, China’s Ministry of Transport (MoT) and nine other authorities jointly issued the Notice on Several Measures for Accelerating the Improvement of Transport and Safety Guarantee Capability of Lithium Batteries for New-energy Vehicles. These prescribed measures aim to facilitate the safe, convenient, and efficient transport of lithium batteries for new-energy vehicles (e.g., electric vehicles, shortened for EVs).

Key points

• The revision process regarding the GB 38031 Electric Vehicle Traction Battery Safety Requirements will be accelerated to enhance the safety technical requirements for lithium batteries. This standard will be revised to further clarify thermal runaway safety performance indicators and testing methods to improve inherent safety levels.
• The Ministry of Industrial and Information Technology (MIIT) issued two revised guidelines for the lithium-ion battery industry to further strengthen standardized management and promote high-quality development. These two revised guidelines were issued on June 18 and took effect on June 20, 2024.
• Lithium battery manufacturers are required to ensure the fresh-from-the-factory lithium batteries conform to the test requirements in the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria Part 3, Section 38.3 (i.e., UN 38.3), and submit the test summary to the carrier before transport. In this regard, stricter supervision will be carried out.
• A classification and grading management system for lithium battery transport will be established.
• There will be initiatives to draft safety transport requirements for lithium batteries via rail, conduct trial operations, and promote international railway cooperation in transporting lithium batteries.
• Manufacturers, maintenance enterprises, and recycling enterprises are required to package lithium batteries properly and consign companies qualified for dangerous goods transport.
• Efforts will be accelerated to establish transportation standards for lithium batteries, including technical requirements for multimodal transport and rail transport safety.
• The government is expediting research to join the European Agreement Concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR). There will be efforts to establish a bilateral mechanism for rapidly implementing international transport rules for lithium batteries with certain countries, facilitating transport channels between China and Europe.

The Notice emphasizes regulatory oversight concerning lithium battery transport, particularly regarding battery testing and certification. This indicates a trend toward stricter and more standardized regulations for lithium battery transport. Relevant enterprises should familiarize themselves with the mentioned policies and continuously monitor updates on laws and standards in this area.