What are the instructions for fire prevention and fighting for charging stations and chargers for electric vehicles in Vietnam?
- The Ministry of Public Security of Vietnam: What are the instructions for fire prevention and fighting for charging stations and chargers for electric vehicles in Vietnam?
- Are charging stations for electric vehicles in Vietnam subject to appraisal of fire safety designs?
- What are the requirements for electric vehicle charging stations located in independent garages or in indoor garages in Vietnam?
The Ministry of Public Security of Vietnam: What are the instructions for fire prevention and fighting for charging stations and chargers for electric vehicles in Vietnam?
In Official Dispatch 3408/BCA-PCCC&CNCH in 2023 of the Ministry of Public Security, it responded to content related to fire prevention and fighting for charging stations and chargers for electric vehicles as follows:
Reply the Official Dispatch No. 4269/BXD-HDXD dated September 22, 2022 of the Ministry of Construction requesting the Ministry of Public Security to comment on content related to fire prevention and fighting for charging stations and chargers for electric vehicles in construction projects, based on Decree 136/2020/ND-CP dated November 24, 2020 of the Government detailing a number of procedures and measures to implement the Law on fire prvention and fighting and the Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on fire prevention and fighting and regulations and standards, the Ministry of Public Security has the opinion:
- Charging stations and chargers for electric vehicles are not subject to fire protection design approval, however, when charging stations and chargers for electric vehicles are additionally installed in If an existing project affects fire safety conditions as prescribed in Point b, Clause 5, Article 13 of Decree 136/2020/ND-CP, the fire protection design for the project must be approved. The Police Department of Fire Prevention, Fighting and Rescue, Ministry of Public Security has guided local police on the subjects and content of approval for projects that install stations and electric chargers for electric vehicles in Official Dispatch 1079/C07-14 in 2022 and Official Dispatch 2075/C07-P-4 in 2022. Therefore, currently there are no problems with the appraisal and acceptance of fire prevention and fighting for construction projects installed charging stations and chargers for electric vehicles.
The Ministry of Public Security of Vietnam: What are the instructions for fire prevention and fighting for charging stations and chargers for electric vehicles in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)
Are charging stations for electric vehicles in Vietnam subject to appraisal of fire safety designs?
In Official Dispatch 1079/C07-P4 dated May 9, 2022 of the Vietnam Fire and Rescue Police Department, guiding the approval of fire safety designs for electric vehicle charging stations.
Accordingly, electric vehicle charging stations are not subject to fire safety designs as prescribed in Appendix V of Decree 136/2020/ND-CP dated November 24, 2020 of the Government. However, when placing electric vehicle charging stations in some types of buildings, the determination of subjects for approval of fire safety designs is prescribed as follows:
- For electric vehicle charging stations located in independent garages; in the indoor garage of construction projects; within the premises of a petrol station: request to carry out approval for objects such as garages, works, and petrol stations specified in Appendix V of Decree 136/2020/ND-CP. The investor requesting approval is the owner of the project.
- For electric vehicle charging stations located outdoors (except in cases located within the premises of a gas station): no design approval for fire protection is required.
What are the requirements for electric vehicle charging stations located in independent garages or in indoor garages in Vietnam?
In Official Dispatch 1079/C07-P4 dated May 9, 2022 of the Vietnam Fire and Rescue Police Department, requirements for electric vehicle charging stations located in independent garages, in indoor garages of constructions are as follows:
- Regarding solutions to prevent fire and prevent fire spread: Electrical cabinets, control equipment and power supply for charging stations must be fire-proofed from the garage area and guaranteed according to the provisions of Article 2.3.4 of QCVN 13:2018/BXD; At the same time, the equipment must comply with the requirements of QCVN 12:2014/BXD and related technical standards on electrical equipment.
- Regarding solutions to prevent smoke accumulation:
+ In case the garage already has an exhaust system or a natural ventilation solution according to regulations: it is allowed to use the existing exhaust solution;
+ In case of designing or constructing a new project with an electric vehicle charging station or a project that does not have a solution to prevent smoke accumulation, there must be an exhaust solution as prescribed in Article 23.3 QCVN 13:2018/BXD and Appendix D QCVN 06:2021/BXD. Exhaust fans must ensure the fire resistance limit as prescribed in D.9 QCVN 06:2021/BXD which is 1.5 hours at 600°C.
- Regarding fire protection equipment, it must be in accordance with the equipment requirements of houses and buildings in TCVN 3890:2009 and requirements for garages as prescribed in QCVN 13:2018/BXD, in which it should be noted:
+ In case the garage already has an automatic water sprinkler fire suppression system according to regulations: it is allowed to use the existing sprinkler system to extinguish fires in the electric vehicle charging station area.
However, the following requirements must be met: the electric vehicle charging station must be turned off before spraying water to fight fires as prescribed in Article 5.1.6 TCVN 7336:2021; The fire-fighting sprinkler system for the electric vehicle charging station area must be converted into a separate fire-fighting cluster controlled and controlled by a deluge valve. The overflow valve is only activated when there is a signal from the system. fire alarm and signal to confirm that the electric vehicle charging station's power source has been disconnected.
Disconnecting the power to the electric vehicle charging station must be done manually and automatically from the fire alarm signal. The emergency switch to disconnect the electric vehicle charging station's power source must be located within a range of no more than 15m from the charging station and must have labeling, instructions on how to operate.
+ In case of designing or constructing a new project with an electric vehicle charging station or a project that does not have a fire protection system or means, it must be equipped according to the provisions of TCVN 3890:2009. If using a water fire extinguishing system, ensure compliance with requirements as in the above case.
C07 recommends that the Police of provinces and centrally run cities research and implement the design appraisal and acceptance of fire prevention and fighting. During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties or problems, they should be reported to C07 for timely answers and guidance.
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