From Niche to Grid: How Compliance Scales with Energy Storage Itself

Building batteries is hard. Even the biggest companies in the world can get it wrong. In 2006, Sony issued a global recall of Sony-manufactured lithium-ion batteries used in notebook computers of several well-known brands, due to overheating incidents.

And yet, energy storage has come a long way, with its capabilities and industrial scale growing massively. And with every leap in scale, there has been an equally large leap in safety rules, test methods, and documentation.

As a result, founders and product managers who understand this history can more easily anticipate, rather than chase, the next wave of requirements.

This guide traces the evolution of energy storage compliance from handheld gadgets to grid infrastructure, showing how each inflection point rewrote the rulebook—and how modern tools like Kite help teams keep pace without slowing innovation.

‍

Key Points

• Battery-safety rules have expanded from UL 1642 and UN 38.3 for handheld electronics to EV‐specific crash, isolation, and transport standards, and now to grid-scale mandates like UL 9540/9540A and NFPA 855.
• High-profile fires and recalls (e.g., Sony batteries, Chevy Volt, South Korea ESS, McMicken) trigger rapid code updates, so tracking incident investigations helps companies predict upcoming requirements.
• U.S. compliance is a patchwork of federal, state, and local rules; engineering to the strictest standard and engaging authorities early shortens permitting and avoids costly redesigns.
• Standards are moving toward performance-based, data-rich verification—relying on Battery Management Systems (BMS) diagnostics, digital twins, and detailed thermal-propagation testing instead of purely prescriptive checklists.
• Investors and utilities demand clear certification roadmaps

The Early Chapters of Energy Storage Compliance History: From Camcorders to Laptops

The first dedicated battery safety standards emerged when lithium chemistries entered consumer electronics in the 1980s and 1990s.

• UL 1642 (published in the 1980s) set baseline safety requirements for primary lithium cells.
• As rechargeable lithium-ion cells hit the market, revisions added requirements for secondary cells, formally defining thermal runaway—the chain reaction that occurs when internal heat generation outpaces heat dissipation.

Laptop recalls in the mid-2000s (e.g. Sony’s recall of lithium cells for laptops), drove two crucial changes:

• Manufacturers adopted statistical quality controls aimed at parts-per-million defect rates.
• Regulators expanded transport rules such as UN 38.3, requiring altitude and vibration tests before cells could fly cargo.

These early chapters proved that even watt-hour-scale packs could disrupt brands and supply chains—lessons that guide modern lab-scale prototyping and production validation.

EV Era Breakthroughs: How Electric Vehicles Expanded the Compliance Playbook

When electric vehicles (EVs) arrived, they introduced hundreds of volts and tens of kilowatt-hours onto public roads. The EV compliance evolution unfolded on three fronts.

1. Crashworthiness
   
   • The 2011 Chevrolet Volt post-crash fire led the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to study delayed thermal runaway. GM added steel reinforcement before NHTSA closed its investigation .
   • Future rules like FMVSS 305 require testing for electrical isolation and electrolyte (coolant) spillage after crash impacts.
2. High-voltage electrical safety‍
   
   • Standards like ISO 6469 require insulation monitoring and automatic disconnects if faults occur.
   • Pack designers began using pyro-fuses—ultra-fast links that sever connection during a crash.‍
3. Transport and end-of-life‍
   
   • Larger packs triggered stricter hazmat shipping labels and State-of-Charge limits.
   • Recycling regulations, such as the EU Battery Directive (2006/66/EC) and its later updates, were introduced to ensure the collection and recycling of spent battery packs .

Grid-Scale Leap: Utility Storage Rewrites the Safety Rulebook

Stationary projects now dwarf EV packs, forcing brand-new utility-scale energy storage regulations.

• UL 9540 (system-level safety) and UL 9540A (thermal-propagation test method) became the de facto North American benchmarks. Utilities, investors, and authorities having jurisdiction (AHJs) often require certification before contracts are signed.
• NFPA 855 established siting rules— including minimum separation distances, fire-rated enclosures, gas detection— that are now referenced in the International Fire Code.
• FERC Order 841 opened wholesale markets to storage by directing grid operators to eliminate tariff barriers. While primarily economic, the order increased visibility of safety certifications in interconnection studies.

Other key additions to standards when applied at grid scale:

• First-responder coordination—site plans, remote shutdowns, and firefighter access.
• Gas management for off-gassing during failures.
• Large-scale commissioning tests simulating full-stack controls, not just cell behavior.

The result is a multi-disciplinary checklist that spans electrical, mechanical, civil, and software domains—demanding cross-functional documentation from startups.

Incident-Driven Change: Fires, Investigations, and Rapid Code Updates

Standards rarely change in a vacuum; high-profile failures often accelerate them. The incident impact on compliance is clearest in two recent cases.

• South Korea ESS fires (2017-2019): More than 23 events caused over $32 million in losses, shutting down 35% of installed units. The government swiftly mandated international standards, environmental controls, and lower indoor state-of-charge limits.
• Arizona McMicken explosion (2019): A thermal runaway event injured firefighters and exposed gaps in gas management and emergency response. Investigators emphasized cell-to-cell barriers and coordinated responder training. UL 9540A was updated to collect granular off-gas data as a result.

These incidents illustrate a feedback loop: failure → investigation → revised tests → stricter codes. Startups that monitor investigative reports can often predict new requirements before they hit the code books.

Jurisdictional Patchwork: Navigating Federal, State, and Local Rules

The US energy storage regulatory landscape is famously fragmented.

• Federal
  
  • FERC oversees interstate transmission, wholesale markets, and interconnection queues.
  • The Department of Transportation governs hazmat transport (49 CFR).
• State
  
  • Public Utility Commissions (PUCs) set interconnection and incentive rules.
  • 17 states have adopted dedicated storage policies as of 2025 (Morgan Lewis).
• Local
  
  • Fire marshals (AHJs) enforce building and fire codes—often referencing NFPA 855 but adding amendments.
  • Zoning boards dictate setback distances and noise limits.

Practical impact:

• Permitting timelines can range from a few months to more than a year.
• Designers typically engineer to the strictest common denominator to avoid redesigns.
• Early engagement with AHJs shortens review cycles by clarifying expectations on UL 9540A reports, gas-venting calculations, and firefighter access.

Harmonization Efforts: Toward Global Consistency in Energy Storage Compliance

To reduce market friction, agencies are pursuing international storage compliance harmonization.

• The IEC 62933 series for stationary storage includes provisions similar to UL 9540, and IEC 62933-5-2 even cites UL 9540A as an example test method for thermal runaway propagation. (Fluence)
• The ISO/TC 22 working group is coordinating EV battery transport standards to sync with UN 38.3 updates.
• Bilateral agreements, such as the U.S.–EU Trade and Technology Council, discuss mutual recognition of conformity assessments for emerging technologies.

Progress is uneven. Fire-code language, for example, still differs on gas concentration thresholds across regions. Founders selling globally should monitor IEC drafts and budget for region-specific addendums until true convergence arrives.

Technology Advances Driving Modern Compliance: BMS, Thermal Testing, and Data

Modern rules increasingly depend on real-time risk detection rather than static prescriptions, making the battery management system (BMS) central to compliance.

• Functional safety: IEC 61508-inspired methodologies assess risk of software or sensor failure.
• Continuous diagnostics: Voltage, temperature, and impedance monitoring feed predictive algorithms that can derate or shut down modules before runaway.
• Granular test data: UL 9540A now allows alternative mitigation strategies if applicants provide robust propagation analysis and emergency venting calculations.

Advances in digital twins let teams simulate fail-states, reducing costly physical iterations. Over time, this data-rich approach could shift standards from prescriptive (do X) to performance-based (prove risk ≤ Y), mirroring the evolution in aerospace and automotive industries.

Turning Risk into Market Trust: Strategic Compliance for Startups

For early-stage companies, strategic compliance for startups is an investment, not overhead.

• Certification testing can consume a significant part of compliance budgets, but non-compliance costs roughly three times more when redesigns, shipment holds, and reputational damage are included.
• Case studies show proactive moves pay off:
  • Chevy Bolt recall: GM’s multi-billion-dollar recall of the Chevy Bolt EV shows how missed cell-level defects can turn into costly battery replacements and reputational damage.
  • Tesla Megapack fires: After Moss Landing, Tesla added roof shielding, software fixes, and shifted to safer LFP chemistry – upgrades that curbed risks and reinforced industry learning .

Investors can ask for compliance roadmaps in diligence, and utilities often require provisional certifications before signing power-purchase agreements. Treating compliance as a go-to-market accelerant shortens sales cycles and opens larger addressable markets.

Automating Compliance So Innovation Can Scale

Tracking hundreds of evolving clauses across UL, IEC, NFPA, and local amendments is beyond manual spreadsheets. Compliance automation platforms like Kite translate standards into tasks that integrate with engineering workflows.

• Real-time rule monitoring: When NFPA publishes an erratum, impact analysis appears in the dashboard.
• AI-assisted gap assessment: Upload a test report, and the system flags unmet clauses and suggests corrective actions.
• Collaboration layer: Engineers, product managers, and third-party labs work from a single source of truth, keeping documentation audit-ready.

By shifting routine tracking to software, teams focus on engineering improvements rather than paperwork, aligning safety, speed, and scale.

Conclusion: Reading the Past to Engineer the Future

Energy storage compliance has scaled lockstep with technology—from camcorder cells to multi-acre battery parks. Each expansion phase introduced new hazards, inspired fresh investigations, and produced tighter standards. Founders who study this timeline gain a roadmap of likely future requirements and a clear case for integrating compliance into product strategy. Tools like Kite that automate rule tracking and evidence gathering help teams stay ahead of the next chapter without slowing the pace of innovation.