On May 7, the General Office of the National Energy Administration, the General Office of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the General Office of the Ministry of Emergency Management, the General Office of the State Administration for Market Regulation, and the Office of the National Fire Rescue Administration jointly issued the "Notice on Strengthening the Safety Management of Electrochemical Energy Storage" (hereinafter referred to as the "Notice"). The Notice proposes to strengthen the safety management of electrochemical energy storage from six aspects: enhancing the inherent safety level of battery systems, conducting safety condition and facility argumentation and evaluation of electrochemical energy storage projects, improving relevant standards and regulations for electrochemical energy storage, implementing safety supervision responsibilities for electrochemical energy storage projects, strengthening interdepartmental cooperation and information sharing, and implementing the primary responsibility of enterprises for production safety.

Among them, enhancing the inherent safety level of battery systems is placed at the top priority, controlling the safety quality of battery systems from the production source. This is implemented by two departments: the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will accelerate research on the safety of battery cells, promote the technological progress of electrochemical energy storage batteries, and regulate the design and manufacturing of battery systems. The State Administration for Market Regulation will regulate the production and sales of battery products, maintain market order, strengthen credit supervision, and promote the construction of a credit system for market entities.

In terms of safety supervision, the principle of "three managements and three musts" and "whoever is in charge leads, whoever is mainly responsible leads, and whoever is closer leads" will be further strengthened. All electrochemical energy storage power station projects must be registered in accordance with the law. When the registration authority registers the project, it should clearly state the primary responsibility of the project unit for production safety in the registration document and implement the safety supervision responsibility for the project. For projects that have been registered, the safety supervision responsibility should be clarified as soon as possible.

In addition, the Notice also emphasizes the need to strengthen interdepartmental cooperation and information sharing. Relevant departments will strengthen cooperation, carry out joint research, training, inspection, and law enforcement. A mechanism for the joint disposal of fire alarms and information sharing for electrochemical energy storage will be promoted.

Similarly, on April 21, the East China Energy Regulatory Bureau solicited opinions on the "Implementation Plan for the Power Inherent Safety Improvement Project" (hereinafter referred to as the "new regulations"). It introduced a number of strict measures in the field of electrochemical energy storage safety, which can be called the strictest regulatory plan in the industry.

Firstly, strict prohibitions are in place: the construction of energy storage power stations in densely populated areas, high-rise buildings, underground spaces, and flammable and explosive areas is banned; units that have had safety production accidents within one year are prohibited from participating in the construction of electrochemical energy storage power stations; and the industry entry threshold for the production and manufacturing of energy storage-related products and systems is raised.

Secondly, strict control is implemented: by the end of 2025, a comprehensive inspection of existing power stations will be completed, and those that do not meet the standards may be shut down for rectification; starting from 2026, new power stations must pass hard indicators such as battery sampling inspection and fire protection acceptance; and a ledger will be established for old batteries in use, outdated battery management systems, and electrical equipment that has been explicitly phased out, with alternative products or technologies identified to complete the phasing-out work by the end of 2025.

Thirdly, new trends are emerging: efforts are being made to improve the personnel positioning, safety monitoring, communication, fire alarm, and explosion self-rescue systems of electrochemical energy storage power stations. It is aimed to achieve precise risk early warning and paperless safety management by the end of 2026, improve the quality and efficiency of management through information management, reduce labor intensity and management costs, and ensure early detection, early warning, and early disposal of risks.

In comparison, the Notice is the first national-level top-level document focusing on the field of electrochemical energy storage. It aims to implement safety responsibilities, strengthen full-chain management, prevent major and especially serious accidents, and promote the high-quality development of electrochemical energy storage. It reflects the country's high attention to energy storage safety and the determination to further strengthen supervision.

In fact, behind the rapid expansion of the energy storage industry, energy storage safety problems have become increasingly prominent and have become a key factor restricting industry development. According to the latest data from CESA, of the 12 energy storage safety accidents that occurred globally in the first quarter of 2025, 83.3% were caused by cell thermal runaway, exposing the safety bottleneck of the traditional technology system.

Under this background, flow batteries, with their inherent safety advantages of aqueous electrolytes, perfectly meet the policy requirements: they have no risk of combustion or explosion, achieving true intrinsic safety; their capacity and power can be flexibly configured; they have a short construction period and declining marginal costs, making them particularly suitable for large-scale energy storage application scenarios with extremely high safety requirements.

The Notice jointly issued by the five departments, with enhancing the inherent safety level of battery systems as the core, builds a safety line of defense from multiple dimensions such as technology research and development, production and manufacturing, and market supervision. It not only responds to the current urgent safety needs but also provides long-term protection for the sustainable and healthy development of the energy storage industry. At present, the deep integration of the intrinsic safety concept into technological innovation and industrial practice is essential for the high-quality development and high-level safety of new energy storage.

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