With the development of lithium battery energy storage, increasingly lithium battery energy storage systems have been developed and applied. Various manufacturing companies have developed large-scale energy storage systems. More manufacturers often directly use customized 10-foot, 20-foot, 40-foot, or even 53-foot ultra-large containers for processing and installation, facilitating production and transportation. As an essential part of the energy storage system with a high proportion, lithium batteries are classified as Class 9 dangerous goods due to the particularity of their chemicals, which require special consideration in transportation.  

How are energy storage containers transported?  

When companies transport energy storage systems to foreign countries, they use traditional methods. Lithium batteries are classified as Class 9 dangerous goods, and UN3480 usually carries out the transportation standard. But the standard results in the disassembly of the battery system and other dangerous goods are required. The container body is transported individually as the shipper's own container (SOC). Batteries and remaining products are transported as dangerous goods and will be assembled at the destination port. The method is also a common practice in the industry.  

Three apparent disadvantages resulted in a significant slowdown in the project schedule.  

·Time-consuming (reassembly and commissioning will take additional days or even weeks) 

·High cost (shipping costs will nearly double as battery systems are packaged individually) 

·The need for professional operators for assembly (for safety reasons, non-trained engineers should avoid operating) 

If a new standard for transportation allows the entire system to be transported, it can be shipped directly after factory installation and commissioning. The on-site engineer only needs to connect the external AC cable after arriving at the customer's project site. 

How exciting that would be?

Currently, the exciting news is the new standard-UN3536. As long as the container energy storage system can provide this certification, the corresponding container can be directly transported as a whole, with no need to disassemble the lithium battery. The new standard significantly saves costs, including labor, transportation, and time. 

What is UN3536?  

UN3536 is defined as "Lithium Batteries Installed in Cargo Transport Unit" and identified as Class 9 Dangerous Goods. UN3536 is suitable for containers with lithium batteries installed, used as large power supply units, and is only used to provide electricity to the outside of the container. Before transportation, the lithium battery pack must be firmly placed on the internal structure of the container, such as a lithium battery rack or a lithium battery cabinet, to prevent the danger of short circuit collision, friction, and shaking of the lithium battery. Critical protection systems to avoid over-charging and over-discharging of lithium batteries must be installed, as well as essential systems of protection to protect container safety, such as fire suppression systems and refrigeration systems. In addition, any other dangerous goods not related to the energy storage system are not allowed to be placed in the container.  

What SolarEast BESS can do for you? 

As an integrator and supplier of lithium battery energy storage systems, SolarEast BESS needs to consider the problems encountered by the entire system from design, production and manufacturing, transportation, after-sales, and during the whole life cycle. At the same time, the company also continues to develop overseas markets and R&D various types of container energy storage systems according to different market demands. In order to facilitate production and transportation, container energy storage systems of 20ft and 40ft are generally used. Different solutions are well-received by customers because they are custom designed in combination with customers' specific needs. 

To pass UN3536 certification, MSDS and UN38.3 certifications are essential. As a senior company in the industry, SolarEast BESS has always been oriented by customer needs, share effort and cost savings for customers. Each SolarEast BESS battery energy storage system solution is UN3536 certificated, and the battery energy storage system is transported as a whole. When it arrives at the site, it can be started with simple wiring, saving many costs, including time, investment, and labor for on-site assembly and commissioning, crucial for an efficient turnkey solution.