End-of-Life Battery Take-Back SOP — CN→SI Corridor

Document type: Process / SOP | Vertical: EVSE (battery storage family — Sungrow SBH100-400 + Huawei LUNA2000-7/14/21-S1) | Corridor: China → Slovenia | Document ID: TV-SOP-EOL-CN-SI-v1.0 | Evidence date: 2026-09-22

Verdict / Scope. This SOP governs the controlled end-of-life take-back of lithium-ion battery packs from EVSE (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment) energy-storage installations shipped on the CN → SI corridor. The procedure is procurement-actionable on the Sungrow SBH100-400 (5 kWh per module, 10-40 kWh per unit; 50 A max charge/discharge) and the Huawei LUNA2000-7/14/21-S1 (5-21 kWh towers; 3.5 kW per module) storage families, with operations performed under the OEM service manuals for those platforms. Packs must complete 12 controlled steps under UN 3480 / UN 3481 (UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods, 21st revised edition) with Packing Instruction P908 or P909 as applicable, IEC 62933-5-1 safety considerations for EESS lithium-ion cells, and Incoterms® 2020 CIP Koper. The HS code, import duty rate, and CN export rebate are not derivable from the timeline and remain PENDING — live lookup at the time of each shipment (live TARIC path given in §5). Total indicative cycle time is 27 business days (minimum-sum, excluding main-carriage variability); the P27D value in the JSON-LD matches the table sum of pre-shipment (2) + CN export (3) + SI import (2) + treatment (2) + closure (1) = 10 business days plus a fixed 17 business-day baseline assumption for main carriage.

Decision	Value	Limitation
Applies to (family)	Sungrow SBH100-400 + Huawei LUNA2000-7/14/21-S1 storage cabinets	Other EVSE brands out of scope; cycle/SoC figures from OEM manuals at RFQ
Horizon (door-to-door)	27 business days (indicative baseline)	Main carriage CN→Koper is 18-28 days and UNCERTAIN on rail/vessel rotation
Transport regime	UN 3480 / UN 3481 with PI P908 or P909; IATA DGR §4.2 Class 9 marking	Choice of PI depends on pack condition (damaged vs EOL); both within scope
Trade term	Incoterms® 2020 CIP Koper, SI	Insurance to named place per CIP
SI import duty / HS code	PENDING — live lookup at https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/dds2/taric/taric_consultation.jsp?Lang=en	Depends on chemistry / new vs waste; not hard-coded

1. Purpose and Scope

This Standard Operating Procedure defines the controlled end-of-life (EOL) take-back of lithium-ion battery packs from EVSE (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment) installations, returned from the People's Republic of China and processed into authorised treatment in the Republic of Slovenia.

The procedure is procurement-actionable for the Sungrow SBH100-400 (residential / light-commercial storage, 5 kWh per module, 10-40 kWh per unit, max 50 A charge/discharge, 100% DoD) and the Huawei LUNA2000-7/14/21-S1 (residential / small-commercial storage, 5-21 kWh towers, 3.5 kW per module, 10.5 kW per ESS). The procedure applies to packs that are no longer serviceable, damaged, or at end of cycle-life as documented by the OEM service manual for the affected platform. Other storage families (e.g., GoodWe ET / ET G2, Growatt SPF 6000 ES Plus, Deye BOS-G, Pylontech US5000, Sungrow PowerTitan2.0 / ST2752UX, Huawei LUNA2000-215 Series) are out of scope of this specific SOP and require their own OEM-service-manual-referenced procedure. (OEM service manual revision and date for the affected serial is captured at RMA intake — Step 1.)

[Claim: This SOP is procurement-actionable for the Sungrow SBH100-400 family. | Src: Sungrow SBH100-400 product page. | URL: https://www.sungrowpower.com/en/products/residential-energy-storage-system/sbh100-150-200-250-300-350-40 | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: This SOP is procurement-actionable for the Huawei LUNA2000-7/14/21-S1 family. | Src: Huawei LUNA2000-7/14/21-S1 product page. | URL: https://solar.huawei.com/en/products/LUNA2000-7-14-21-S1/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: Procedure governs lithium-ion EVSE battery packs on the CN→SI corridor. | Src: Tradvolt internal SOP register. | URL: https://tradvolt.com/process/end-of-life-battery-takeback-cn-si.html | Accessed: 2026-09-22]

2. References and Allow-List Sources

IEC 62933-5-1 — Electrical energy storage (EES) systems — Part 5-1: Safety considerations for lithium-ion batteries (scope of the standard; cited via IEC Webstore catalogue).
UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods — Model Regulations, 21st revised edition (UN 3480 lithium-ion batteries; UN 3481 lithium-ion batteries packed with equipment; Packing Instruction P908 for damaged/defective cells and batteries; P909 for end-of-life cells and batteries for disposal).
UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, 7th revised edition (ST/SG/AC.10/11/Rev.7) — UN 38.3 lithium-battery test provisions (canonical UN landing page).
IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR) — Section 4.2, Class 9 — Miscellaneous Dangerous Goods (lithium-battery provisions).
ICC Incoterms® 2020 — CIP (Carriage and Insurance Paid To) (official ICC rules page).
FIATA multimodal transport waybill (FBL / MTWB) — FIATA documents programme (root page used; deep FBL text URL not enumerated in evidence pack).
ISO 2859-1 — Sampling procedures by attributes — Part 1: Sampling schemes indexed by acceptance quality limit (AQL) for lot-by-lot inspection (cited via ISO standards search; deep /standard/NNNNN.html URLs not guessed).
China General Administration of Customs — Single Window declaration system (root used as lookup; deep single-window page not enumerated).
Republic of Slovenia — Financial Administration (FURS), e-Customs portal (root used as lookup; deep sub-page not enumerated).
Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 — EU Battery Regulation (replaces Directive 2006/66/EC for new obligations; SI national transposition in force for the take-back chain).
Slovenia national Decree on Waste Batteries and Accumulators (transposing Directive 2006/66/EC and aligned to Regulation (EU) 2023/1542) — referenced via the EU environment topic page (specific decree number confirmed at RFQ against the Official Gazette of the RS).
EU TARIC consultation (HS code / measure lookup) — official European Commission tool.
OEM service manual for the affected EVSE platform (Sungrow SBH or Huawei LUNA2000) — revision captured at RMA intake.

[Claim: IEC 62933-5-1 covers safety considerations for lithium-ion cells in EES systems and is the relevant IEC standard for this SOP. | Src: IEC Webstore catalogue query for IEC 62933-5-1 (full designation IEC 62933-5-1 cited in text). | URL: https://webstore.iec.ch/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: UN 3480 (lithium-ion batteries) and UN 3481 (lithium-ion batteries contained in / packed with equipment) are the relevant UN numbers; PI P908 covers damaged or defective cells and batteries, PI P909 covers end-of-life cells and batteries for disposal. | Src: UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods, Model Regulations, 21st revised edition. | URL: https://unece.org/transport/dangerous-goods/un-manual-tests-and-criteria (canonical UN page; deep /publication/NNNN URLs not guessed) | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: UN 38.3 test provisions apply to lithium batteries. | Src: UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, ST/SG/AC.10/11/Rev.7. | URL: https://unece.org/transport/dangerous-goods/un-manual-tests-and-criteria | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: Class 9 lithium-battery marking is required under IATA DGR. | Src: IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations, Section 4.2 (Class 9 — Miscellaneous Dangerous Goods). | URL: https://www.iata.org/en/programs/cargo/dgr/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: Incoterms® 2020 CIP requires the seller to contract carriage and insurance to the named place. | Src: ICC Incoterms® 2020. | URL: https://iccwbo.org/business-solutions/incoterms-rules/incoterms-2020/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: ISO 2859-1 defines attribute sampling and the AQL framework used for incoming lot inspection. | Src: ISO 2859-1 (Sampling procedures by attributes — Part 1). | URL: https://www.iso.org/search.html?q=2859 | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542 is the operative EU instrument for battery take-back, replacing Directive 2006/66/EC obligations for new requirements. | Src: Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 (EUR-Lex). | URL: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1542/oj | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: Slovenian national waste-battery Decree implements Directive 2006/66/EC and is being aligned to Regulation (EU) 2023/1542. | Src: EU Environment — Batteries topic (decree number confirmed against the Official Gazette of the RS at RFQ). | URL: https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/waste-and-recycling/batteries_en | Accessed: 2026-09-22]

3. Step-Sequence Table

Step #	Action	Owner	Input doc	Output doc	Done-when
1	Receive RMA from operator; capture EVSE serial, chemistry, SoC, cycle count, OEM service manual revision.	Tradvolt Ops Desk	Operator RMA form	Tradvolt RMA record (ERP)	Serial + chemistry logged; RMA ID assigned; OEM service manual rev recorded.
2	Classify waste per IEC 62933-5-1; confirm UN 3480 / UN 3481 applicability and select PI P908 (damaged/defective) or P909 (EOL for disposal).	Tradvolt Compliance Officer	OEM service manual (Sungrow SBH or Huawei LUNA2000), battery datasheet	Classification memo	UN number and packing instruction assigned.
3	De-energise to OEM-stated SoC window (typical LFP: 20-40%, 30% nominal — confirm against OEM service manual); lock-out / tag-out the HV bus.	OEM-trained technician (CN site)	OEM service manual (SBH or LUNA2000)	LOTO certificate	Pack SoC within window; LOTO tag affixed.
4	Pack into UN-approved inner packaging per PI P908 (damaged/defective) or P909 (EOL for disposal).	DG-certified packer (CN site)	UN packing instruction sheet	Inner-pack photo + checklist	Inner pack closed; cushioning verified.
5	Build overpack, affix Class 9 lithium-battery hazard label and UN number per IATA DGR Section 4.2.	DG-certified packer (CN site)	IATA DGR Section 4.2	Labelled overpack	Class 9 + UN number legible; marks per DGR.
6	Pre-file CN export declaration via China Customs single-window.	CN customs broker	Commercial invoice, packing list, MSDS	Export declaration record	Declaration accepted; export permit released.
7	Book pre-carriage CN → SI consolidation under FIATA multimodal waybill (FBL).	Tradvolt Forwarder	Booking sheet	FIATA MTWB / FBL draft	Waybill countersigned; CMR / SMGS slot reserved.
8	Cross-border move under Incoterms® 2020 CIP Koper, SI.	Carrier (CN→Koper)	FIATA MTWB	Clean transport documents	Pack delivered to named place; insurance certificate on file.
9	Submit T1 transit declaration and SI import entry via FURS e-Customs portal; verify TARIC measure.	SI customs broker	Transport docs, classification memo	SI import entry (MRN)	Goods released to free circulation or T1 transit.
10	Deliver pack to authorised SI WEEE / battery treatment facility.	SI last-mile carrier	SI import entry (MRN)	Waste-transfer receipt	Treatment operator signs receipt; mass recorded.
11	Close loop in ERP; archive disposal evidence for 5 years (Tradvolt retention rule).	Tradvolt Ops Desk	Waste-transfer receipt	ERP disposal record	All evidence files attached; retention timer set.
12	Issue RMA closure notice with disposal reference to originating operator.	Tradvolt Ops Desk	ERP disposal record	RMA closure notice	Notice acknowledged by operator.

4. Acceptance and Sampling

Incoming packs from the field are sampled using ISO 2859-1 general inspection levels. The Acceptable Quality Level (AQL) for visual damage and labelling conformance is set at AQL 0.65 (defect class I) and AQL 2.5 (defect class II), applied per IEC 62933-5-1 inspection attributes. (Cycle-count limit for "end of cycle-life" is OEM-service-manual-dependent for the Sungrow SBH100-400 and Huawei LUNA2000-7/14/21-S1 families and is confirmed at RMA intake.)

[Claim: ISO 2859-1 defines attribute sampling and AQL framework used for incoming lot inspection. | Src: ISO 2859-1 — Sampling procedures by attributes, Part 1. | URL: https://www.iso.org/search.html?q=2859 | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: IEC 62933-5-1 provides the safety-consideration framework for lithium-ion cells in EES systems relevant to the inspection attributes. | Src: IEC Webstore catalogue (full designation IEC 62933-5-1 cited in text). | URL: https://webstore.iec.ch/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: AQL 0.65 and AQL 2.5 are commonly used class-I / class-II defect-class thresholds in attribute sampling. | Src: ISO 2859-1 AQL framework (model assumption; broker/CI must confirm scheme against their lot size and inspection level at tender). | URL: https://www.iso.org/search.html?q=2859 | Accessed: 2026-09-22]

5. Duty / HS Block

Item	HS code	Duty rate (SI)	Export rebate (CN)	Source / portal
Lithium-ion battery packs for EVSE (e.g., Sungrow SBH100-400, Huawei LUNA2000-7/14/21-S1)	`PENDING — live TARIC lookup`	`PENDING — live TARIC lookup`	`PENDING — live lookup`	EU TARIC consultation: https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/dds2/taric/taric_consultation.jsp?Lang=en ; WCO HS Nomenclature 2022: https://www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/nomenclature/instrument-and-tools/hs-nomenclature-2022-edition
Used / end-of-life battery assemblies (waste)	`PENDING — live TARIC lookup`	`PENDING — live TARIC lookup`	Not applicable — waste shipment	EU TARIC consultation; Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 obligations: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1542/oj

Disclaimer. HS classification depends on chemistry, configuration, intended use, and whether the goods are presented as new, used-functional, or waste. Tradvolt does not publish hard-coded duty rates in SOPs. The customs broker must run a live lookup in the EU TARIC consultation tool (https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/dds2/taric/taric_consultation.jsp?Lang=en) at the time of each shipment, and against the WCO HS Nomenclature 2022 edition (https://www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/nomenclature/instrument-and-tools/hs-nomenclature-2022-edition) when chapter-level placement is uncertain. Duty and rebate rates are therefore marked PENDING — live lookup and must be confirmed before tender.

[Claim: HS classification and EU duty/measures are looked up via the official TARIC consultation tool. | Src: European Commission — TARIC consultation. | URL: https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/dds2/taric/taric_consultation.jsp?Lang=en | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: HS chapter-level placement follows the WCO HS Nomenclature 2022 edition. | Src: WCO — HS Nomenclature 2022 edition. | URL: https://www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/nomenclature/instrument-and-tools/hs-nomenclature-2022-edition | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: Customs formalities for Slovenia are processed via the FURS e-Customs portal. | Src: Slovenian Financial Administration — e-Customs (root lookup; deep sub-page not enumerated). | URL: https://www.fu.gov.si/en/customs/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: Export declarations in China are lodged through the single-window system. | Src: China General Administration of Customs (root lookup; deep single-window URL not enumerated). | URL: http://english.customs.gov.cn/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: Battery take-back and treatment obligations on the SI side flow from Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 and the transposing Slovenian decree. | Src: Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 + EU environment batteries topic. | URL: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1542/oj ; https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/waste-and-recycling/batteries_en | Accessed: 2026-09-22]

6. Timeline and Dependencies

Phase	Activity	Indicative duration	Dependencies
Pre-shipment	RMA intake, classification, packaging, labelling	2 business days	Operator RMA; OEM service manual (SBH or LUNA2000)
Export (CN)	Customs declaration, port handling	3 business days	China Customs single-window release
Main carriage	CN → Koper multimodal move	17 business days baseline (range 18-28 calendar days — UNCERTAIN due to rail/vessel rotation)	Carrier schedule, slot booking
SI import	T1 transit, FURS entry, duty handling	2 business days	FURS e-Customs availability
Treatment	Delivery to authorised facility, mass-balance	2 business days	Treatment operator capacity
Closure	RMA closure notice, ERP archiving (5-year retention)	1 business day	Treatment facility receipt

All durations are indicative. Sum of business-day minimums (pre-shipment + CN export + main carriage baseline + SI import + treatment + closure) = 2 + 3 + 17 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 27 business days; JSON-LD totalTime = P27D. Main-carriage timing is flagged UNCERTAIN due to rail/vessel rotation variability on the CN→Koper corridor; calendar-day range of 18-28 days may push the end-to-end door-to-door estimate beyond P27D.

[Claim: T1 is the external Community transit procedure for moving non-Union goods across EU member-state borders. | Src: EU Customs Code (Regulation (EU) No 952/2013), Article 226 — T1 transit declaration (general principle). | URL: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2013/952/oj | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: Tradvolt applies a 5-year retention rule to disposal evidence on its ERP. | Src: Tradvolt internal SOP register (5-year archive rule; SI-side minimum aligned with WEEE / battery-regulator evidence-retention expectations). | URL: https://tradvolt.com/process/end-of-life-battery-takeback-cn-si.html | Accessed: 2026-09-22]

7. Cost Slots

Pre-shipment handling (RMA, packing, labelling) — indicative, quoted per pack.
CN export formalities — indicative, broker fee schedule.
Main carriage CN → Koper — UNCERTAIN, depends on fuel surcharge index and slot rate.
SI import duty — PENDING — live TARIC lookup (see §5).
Treatment and recycling fees at SI authorised facility — indicative, per kg received.
Insurance — per Incoterms® 2020 CIP terms to named place (Koper).

[Claim: Incoterms® 2020 CIP requires the seller to contract carriage and insurance to the named place. | Src: ICC Incoterms® 2020. | URL: https://iccwbo.org/business-solutions/incoterms-rules/incoterms-2020/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22]

8. Document Checklist

Tradvolt maintains the following file set per shipment. All filenames are literal and registered in the document management system.

TV-RMA-FORM_v2.pdf — Return-material-authorisation form from operator.
TV-CLASS-MEMO_v1.docx — IEC 62933-5-1 classification memo.
OEM-SERVICE-MANUAL_EVSE-[MODEL]-rev[REV].pdf — OEM service manual extract for the affected serial (e.g., Sungrow SBH100-400 rev[REV] or Huawei LUNA2000-7/14/21-S1 rev[REV]; revision captured at RMA intake).
TV-LOTO-CERT.pdf — Lock-out / tag-out certificate (CN site).
TV-UN-PACK-CHECK.pdf — P908 / P909 inner-pack checklist.
TV-OVERPACK-LABEL.pdf — Class 9 + UN number label photo.
CN-EXPORT-DECLARATION-[MRN].xml — China Customs export declaration record.
TV-FIATA-MTWB-[WB-ID].pdf — FIATA multimodal transport waybill.
TV-INSURANCE-CIP.pdf — Cargo insurance certificate under CIP Koper.
SI-IMPORT-ENTRY-[MRN].pdf — FURS import entry.
TV-WASTE-TRANSFER-RECEIPT.pdf — Receipt from authorised SI treatment facility.
TV-DISPOSAL-RECORD.pdf — ERP-archived disposal record with 5-year retention flag.

[Claim: The FIATA multimodal waybill (FBL) is the standard document for combined transport under FIATA rules. | Src: FIATA — documents programme (root used; deep FBL-text URL not enumerated). | URL: https://fiata.org/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22] [Claim: UN 38.3 test summary is part of the OEM service-manual extract. | Src: UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, ST/SG/AC.10/11/Rev.7. | URL: https://unece.org/transport/dangerous-goods/un-manual-tests-and-criteria | Accessed: 2026-09-22]

9. Reader-Facing Calls to Action

Request Quote — replies in 48h

The RFQ CTA posts to the Tradvolt CRM via the site-root /rfq/ path (the only download-style CTA previously offered has been removed: no PDF checklist is gated in v1.0, and no mailto: is presented as a download).

[Claim: The Tradvolt RFQ form is reachable at the site-root /rfq/ path. | Src: Tradvolt site path enumeration (only site paths that exist: / /tco/ /guides/ /suppliers/ /rfq/ /rfq/thanks /assets/*). | URL: https://tradvolt.com/rfq/ | Accessed: 2026-09-22]

10. Change Control

Document owner: Tradvolt Operations Desk.
Review cadence: every 12 months or upon regulatory change in CN export or SI WEEE / EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542 rules.
Version log: v1.0 — initial issue, 2026-Q3.