The topic of lithium battery test summaries was covered in depth in a previous CHEMTREC blog here
Posted: Tue Dec 17, 2024 6:28 am
As part of its revision of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) to maintain alignment with international shipping regulations, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued its long-awaited final rule in May. Here’s what that means for those shipping lithium batteries in the United States.
On May 11, PHMSA published in the Federal Register its final rule on harmonization with international standards for hazardous materials. The rule, which is effective immediately and is the final rule following PHMSA’s proposed rules in 2018, includes regulations related to lithium battery test summaries. This final rule differs from the 2018 proposal in several respects.
As a background, the HMR (49 CFR Parts 171-185) requires lithium battery moj database and cell manufacturers to “perform appropriate UN design tests to ensure they are properly classified for transportation, and to develop records of successful test completion, known as a test report.”
These test summaries provide traceability and accountability and must be available to distributors down the supply chain. In most respects, PHMSA’s final rule is the same as the 2018 proposal. However, there are some significant differences from the previously proposed rulemaking.
New to the Final Rule
There are a number of key points in the final rule that differ from the proposed rule and the current Model United Nations regulations. It is important to remember, however, that the PHMSA rule applies only within the United States, while the international rule is already in effect (as of January 1, 2020) and also applies to U.S. businesses engaged in international shipping.
One of the aforementioned differences in the PHMSA rule is that test summaries must be provided for batteries manufactured as of January 1, 2008. UN 38.3 requires test summaries for batteries dating back to 2003.
In making this change to bring the threshold date forward to 2008, PHMSA noted that it had heard comments submitted regarding “the potential difficulty in obtaining test summaries for older batteries, particularly in cases where a manufacturer may no longer be in business or has merged with another company.”
Additionally, PHMSA’s final rule provides more time to achieve compliance, changing the implementation date for this provision from 2020 to 2022. The agency felt that companies had additional opportunities to adequately comply due to the initial efforts required to achieve compliance.
On May 11, PHMSA published in the Federal Register its final rule on harmonization with international standards for hazardous materials. The rule, which is effective immediately and is the final rule following PHMSA’s proposed rules in 2018, includes regulations related to lithium battery test summaries. This final rule differs from the 2018 proposal in several respects.
As a background, the HMR (49 CFR Parts 171-185) requires lithium battery moj database and cell manufacturers to “perform appropriate UN design tests to ensure they are properly classified for transportation, and to develop records of successful test completion, known as a test report.”
These test summaries provide traceability and accountability and must be available to distributors down the supply chain. In most respects, PHMSA’s final rule is the same as the 2018 proposal. However, there are some significant differences from the previously proposed rulemaking.
New to the Final Rule
There are a number of key points in the final rule that differ from the proposed rule and the current Model United Nations regulations. It is important to remember, however, that the PHMSA rule applies only within the United States, while the international rule is already in effect (as of January 1, 2020) and also applies to U.S. businesses engaged in international shipping.
One of the aforementioned differences in the PHMSA rule is that test summaries must be provided for batteries manufactured as of January 1, 2008. UN 38.3 requires test summaries for batteries dating back to 2003.
In making this change to bring the threshold date forward to 2008, PHMSA noted that it had heard comments submitted regarding “the potential difficulty in obtaining test summaries for older batteries, particularly in cases where a manufacturer may no longer be in business or has merged with another company.”
Additionally, PHMSA’s final rule provides more time to achieve compliance, changing the implementation date for this provision from 2020 to 2022. The agency felt that companies had additional opportunities to adequately comply due to the initial efforts required to achieve compliance.