Vietnam-Built Battery Storage Earns Its First UL 9540 Certificate

A battery storage system built in Vietnam has passed one of the toughest safety tests in the industry. VinEnergo Energy Joint Stock Company and UL Solutions held a ceremony in Hanoi on November 10, 2026, to announce UL 9540 certification for a 5 MWh battery storage system. The company says it is the first UL 9540 safety certification for a storage system manufactured in Southeast Asia, a milestone it presents as a step toward selling Vietnamese-made storage in North America and other markets with strict safety standards.

The certificate matters because storage is no longer a side business for Vietnam’s energy companies. It is the technology that plays a critical role in determining whether solar and wind power can be used when the grid needs them, and whether Vietnamese manufacturers can sell into markets that demand proof, not promises.

What UL 9540 is, and why it matters

UL 9540 is the North American safety standard for energy storage systems. It tests the whole system, from individual cells through modules and racks to the full installation, for fire safety, electrical safety, and failure behavior. A manufacturer that holds the certificate can sell into the United States and Canada, where utilities, insurers, and regulators treat it as a baseline requirement. Without it, a storage product may face significant hurdles in markets with stringent regulations.

For VinEnergo, the certificate is therefore a market passport as much as a safety verdict. The company says the certification marks an important step in its strategy to bring its storage products to international markets, particularly markets with stringent safety, quality and technical standards, such as North America. The claim of a Southeast Asian first is the company’s own.

The system itself

The certified system is a 5 MWh battery energy storage unit manufactured at the VinES Ha Tinh energy storage battery plant. It uses active liquid-cooling technology that controls battery cell temperatures precisely, reduces temperature differences between cells and extends the system’s lifespan, according to the company. Liquid cooling has emerged as a common standard for large storage systems because it keeps cells within a narrow temperature band, which protects both safety and capacity over thousands of charge cycles. The system also carries an active fire prevention and protection solution that detects incidents early, isolates them and triggers automatic suppression. To obtain the certification, it passed the UL 9540A test, which assesses how thermal runaway, fire and gas release could spread inside a storage system.

Nguyen Huong Giang, Standing Deputy CEO of VinEnergo, said the company sees energy storage as a key technology for modernizing the power grid and accelerating the shift to clean energy in Vietnam. VinEnergo is developing capabilities across the whole value chain, she said, from research and development and manufacturing to integrating storage into real applications and operations.

A maker, not just a project developer

VinEnergo, a green energy company under Vingroup, has supplied and is currently deploying more than 1.6 GWh of energy storage batteries for power corporations under Vietnam Electricity and for domestic and international businesses including Marubeni, MM Mega Market and Nghi Son 2 Power. In late October 2026 it commissioned a 45 MWh battery storage system combined with rooftop solar for a cluster of factories at Vung Ang Industrial Park in Ha Tinh, feeding the VinFast electric-car plant, the VinES battery plant and a battery-manufacturing joint venture.

A technician inspecting battery modules and cooling pipes inside a storage cabinet. — The certified system uses active liquid cooling and passed the UL 9540A test on thermal runaway, fire and gas release. Photo illustration

The company is not only selling hardware. Its Vung Ang project runs under a direct power purchase agreement, which VinEnergo highlights as the first of its kind for the company, letting the factories buy solar power directly rather than through the grid. The combination of generation, storage and a direct sales contract is the model Vietnam’s revised power rules were written to encourage, and it is also the model that is significantly strengthened by certified, bankable storage.

Why certification comes now

The timing is not accidental. Vietnam’s grid operator is buying storage at an unprecedented pace. According to EVN, 2026 marks the beginning of its battery storage deployment, with capacity in the north expected to reach 805 MW, and a further 930 MW planned for 2027. Rooftop solar rules under Decree 243 push solar-plus-storage pairing, and the ministry set 2026 generation price ceilings for wind and solar plants on November 5. Each of these policies contributes to strong demand for storage that is safe, certified and financeable.

VinEnergo’s certificate answers the financeable part. A storage system with UL 9540 behind it can be insured, financed and exported on more favorable terms than a system without it. The test for the company now is whether the certificate turns into orders outside Vietnam, and whether the Ha Tinh plant can produce at the scale those orders would need. Domestic demand alone would justify the investment: EVN’s storage purchases are only beginning, and every new solar and wind project that adds batteries benefits greatly from a certified supplier. The first certificate is a door opening. The orders will show whether anyone walks through it.