I. Certification
What to look for in certification.
Based on certification practices, here is an overview of key certifications: UN38.3—CCPIT (China Council for the Promotion of International Trade) (Tips for exporting lithium battery packs; lithium battery packs intended for transport—UN3480, UN3481, UN3090, UN3091—must pass the tests required by Section 38.3, Part III of the UN *Manual of Tests and Criteria* prior to delivery); IEC 62133—Tencent Cloud (Essential reading for new energy designers to fully understand lithium battery certification systems; IEC 62133 international safety standard; 8 tests simulating extreme air transport environments); IEC 62619—People.cn (Consumer lithium batteries must comply with IEC 62133; industrial and commercial energy storage batteries generally require compliance with IEC 62619 and IEC 63056; automotive power batteries must comply with ECE R100 and ECE R136); CE—Maoqitong (Mandatory certifications for exporting batteries to the EU; CE certification is a prerequisite for market entry; applicable directives/regulations include the Low Voltage Directive (LVD), Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) Directive, Machinery Directive, and EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542); IEC 62619—BSLBATT (Certifications required for exporting LiFePO4 batteries; EU requires CE marking and IEC 62619 certification; Australia requires CEC and RCM certifications; North America requires UL 1973 certification); IEC 63056—Dongguan Municipal Government (Guidelines on funding for export certification of new energy storage battery products; EU CB certifications including IEC/EN 62619, IEC/EN 62133, EN 62368, IEC/EN 50604, and IEC/EN 63056)—Six key certifications: UN38.3, IEC 62133, IEC 62619, CE, IEC 62619, IEC.
63056, six key areas of certification compliance.
II.
Markets
What to look for regarding markets.
Market practices indicate the following focus areas: EU—Essential Export Requirements (Small Energy Storage Equipment; mandatory CE marking for lithium-ion batteries under 1 kWh; RoHS compliance/lead-free manufacturing; UN38.3 packaging for air transport); North America—BESS Certification Guide (UL 9540, UL 1973, IEC 62619; UL 1973 for specific battery models; UL 9540 for complete systems comprising battery, PCS, and enclosure); Australia—CEC and RCM certifications; Japan—J62133 certification; South Korea—K62619 certification; Malaysia—Guidelines on energy storage battery certification and labeling (UPS backup batteries must comply with IEC 62040-1; light electric vehicle batteries must meet UN R136 and IEC 62619; EV batteries must pass UN R100 and UN 38.3). The six market focus areas are: EU, North America, Australia, Japan, South Korea, and Malaysia.
III.
Transportation
What to look for regarding transportation.
Regarding transport practices, consider these six aspects: **Dangerous Goods Packaging Certificate** (Customs Q&A on lithium battery export requirements: lithium battery products classified as dangerous goods must undergo a local customs assessment for packaging usage and obtain the “Inspection Result Sheet for the Use of Packaging for Outbound Dangerous Goods”—commonly known as the Dangerous Goods Packaging Certificate—prior to export); **UN38.3** (A guide to certifications for shipping lithium batteries: clarifying UN38.3, MSDS, and DGM air/sea transport assessment reports; UN38.3 is a safety performance test and certification for lithium batteries and battery packs during transport); **MSDS** (The most important document is the UN 38.3 test certificate; Safety Data Sheet [SDS/MSDS] containing detailed information on chemical composition, hazards, and emergency measures); **Dangerous Goods Declaration** (Declaration of dangerous goods with the correct UN number—e.g., UN3480, UN3481, UN3090); **Transport Safety Statement** (All air shipments of lithium batteries—including cells, modules, and packs—require an accompanying transport safety statement for each batch); **Special Provision 188** (Lithium-ion and lithium-metal batteries are classified as dangerous goods under UN regulations; if they comply with the provisions of Special Provision 188 for the relevant mode of transport, they are exempt from the customs packaging usage assessment but must display the lithium battery mark on each package). In summary, ensure these six elements—Dangerous Goods Packaging Certificate, UN38.3, MSDS, Dangerous Goods Declaration, Transport Safety Statement, and Special Provision 188—are properly addressed for transport.
IV.
Institutions
What to look for regarding institutions.
Here is an overview of the perspectives from key organizations: UL—UL Solutions (battery testing and certification services for manufacturers; standards including UL 2271 for light electric vehicle batteries, UL 2580 for EV batteries, and UL 1973 for stationary/light rail applications); CQC—China Quality Certification Centre (certification rules CQC13-464225-2024 for lithium-ion batteries used in energy storage; certification based on GB/T 36276-2023; CCC, CQC, and IECEE-CB certificates); TÜV NORD (energy storage certification in China; standards including UL 1642, UL 1973, UL 9540, IEC 61000, RoHS 2011/65/EC, and functional safety standards IEC/UL 60730 and IEC 61508); MCM—Guangzhou MCM (certification for EESS batteries; European CE certification and compliance with the new EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542; EMC, RoHS, and LVD testing); Customs—General Administration of Customs (policies on safe export of hazardous goods; requirements to apply to local customs for packaging inspection prior to export); CCPIT—China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (tips for exporting lithium battery packs; UN38.3 testing typically conducted by professional agencies that issue reports). These six entities—UL, CQC, TÜV NORD, MCM, Customs, and CCPIT—provide comprehensive coverage.
V.
Trends
What to look for regarding trends.
Regarding industry trends, consider the following six aspects: System-level—A&S Power (UL 9540 covering the complete system—battery, PCS, and enclosure; UL 9540A test data at cell, module, unit, and installation levels); Thermal runaway—Alibaba Seller Central (UL 9540A test method for thermal runaway fire propagation, mandatory for NFPA 855 compliance); Regulatory compliance—Maoqitong (brief analysis of business models and legal policies in the European energy storage market; sales and installation of energy storage equipment must comply with CE certification, including the Low Voltage Directive (LVD) and Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) Directive; EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542 effective from 2023); Funding—Dongguan Municipal Government (guidelines on funding for export certification of new energy storage battery products; certifications include EU CB, North American UL1973, Japanese J62133, South Korean K62619, and international UN38.3); National Standards—CQC (GB/T 36276-2023 Lithium-ion batteries for electric energy storage; certification certificates for battery cells/modules based on GB/T 36276-2023 are issued in two stages); Mandatory certification—CNCA (trial implementation of CNCA-C09-02:2026 for lithium-ion batteries and packs used in power banks; inclusion in the Compulsory Product Certification catalog; GB 31241). These six perspectives—system-level, thermal runaway, regulatory compliance, funding, national standards, and mandatory certification—provide a comprehensive overview of the trends.
Conclusion
What certifications are required for the export of energy storage components?
The conclusion is that export certification for these components should be viewed through five key links: certification, market, transportation, institutions, and trends.
Certifications—CCPIT (UN38.3 testing required for lithium battery exports; CCPIT), Tencent Cloud (UN38.3 8-item test & transport safety declaration per batch; Tencent Cloud), People.cn (IEC 62619 & IEC 63056 required for industrial/commercial energy storage batteries; People.cn), Maoqitong (EU CE certification per EU 2023/1542 battery regulation; Maoqitong), BSLBATT (EU CE & IEC 62619, North America UL 1973, Australia CEC RCM; BSLBATT), Dongguan Municipal Government (EU CB certification, IEC/EN 62619, etc.; Dongguan Municipal Government); Markets—Faes (EU CE, RoHS, lead-free, UN38.3 air transport; Faes), A&S Power (North America UL 1973 & UL 9540 system-level; A&S Power), BSLBATT (Australia CEC RCM certification; BSLBATT), Dongguan Municipal Government (Japan J62133; Dongguan Municipal Government), Dongguan Municipal Government (South Korea K62619; Dongguan Municipal Government), Shandong Provincial Department of Commerce (Malaysia UN R136, IEC 62619, UN R100; Shandong Provincial Department of Commerce); Transport—People’s Daily Overseas Edition (Export requires Dangerous Goods Packaging Certificate/Inspection Result Sheet; People’s Daily), Maoqitong (UN38.3, MSDS, and DGM air/sea transport inspection reports; Maoqitong), Faes (SDS/MSDS, dangerous goods declaration, UN number; Faes), Tencent Cloud (Transport safety declaration attached to each air shipment batch; Tencent Cloud), General Administration of Customs (Exemption from packaging inspection if compliant with Special Provision 188, but lithium battery pack marking required; GACC), CCPIT (UN38.3 testing and report issuance by professional agencies; CCPIT); Institutions—UL Solutions (UL 2271, UL 2580, UL
…1973, UL), China Quality Certification Centre (CQC13-464225-2024 per GB/T 36276-2023, CQC), TÜV NORD (UL1642, UL1973, UL9540, IEC 61000, RoHS; TÜV NORD), Guangzhou MCM (EU New Battery Regulation EU 2023/1542, EMC, RoHS, LVD; MCM), General Administration of Customs (local customs packaging usage assessment; GACC), CCPIT (professional agency UN38.3 testing; CCPIT); Trends—A&S Power (UL 9540 system-level UL 9540A Level 4 test data; A&S Power), Alibaba Seller Central (UL 9540A thermal runaway propagation test, NFPA 855; Alibaba), Maoqitong (European CE plus LVD, EMC, and 2023 Battery Regulation; Maoqitong), Dongguan Municipal Government (export certification subsidies for EU CB, North American UL1973, etc.; Dongguan Government), CQC (GB/T 36276-2023 two-stage certification; CQC), CNCA (mandatory certification for power bank lithium batteries per GB 31241/CNCA-C09-02:2026; CNCA). According to industry practice, here is the summary for energy storage components: look for UN38.3 for general certification;
CE plus IEC 62619 for the EU; UL 1973 for North America; Dangerous Goods Packaging Certificates for transport;
and UL 9540 system-level standards for future trends—clear these five hurdles, and energy storage exports will proceed without worry.
