A permitted facility built for it, not adapted to it. That means fire suppression rated for the product class, adequate water pressure with a backup generator if city pressure drops, climate and humidity control, and EPA compliance. Approval comes from both the city and the fire marshal.
Lithium Ion Battery Storage
Warehouse Storage of Lithium-Ion Batteries in Arizona
SKU Distribution operates a permitted lithium-ion battery storage facility in Chandler, Arizona, with multi-level racking, lot and manufacture-date traceability, and Foreign-Trade Zone duty deferral for qualifying imported inventory.
Most 3PLs cannot legally store lithium-ion batteries, and many find out the hard way. We regularly get calls from warehouses that accepted battery inventory without the right permits and now have thirty days from the fire marshal to get it out. Warehouse storage of lithium ion batteries is built differently from the ground up, or it isn’t compliant at all.
145,000
Sq ft
Permitted & approved battery-cell storage
3
Levels
Multi-level storage configuration
FTZ
Status
Duty deferral & qualifying re-export benefits
Lithium-ion battery inventory can require specialized storage configurations, traceability and regulatory planning that conventional warehouse operations may not be designed to support. SKU combines permitted battery-cell storage with inventory management, three-level storage capacity and Foreign-Trade Zone capabilities in Arizona. For import-heavy battery and energy businesses, qualifying merchandise admitted into an activated FTZ can remain there with duties deferred until it enters U.S. commerce. Qualifying foreign merchandise that is re-exported from the FTZ can generally leave without U.S. customs duties.
What sets our facility apart
Foreign-Trade Zone advantages
Eligible imported battery inventory can be admitted into the FTZ while applicable duties remain deferred until merchandise enters U.S. commerce. Qualifying foreign merchandise re-exported from the FTZ can generally leave without incurring U.S. customs duties.
Inventory traceability
SKU’s inventory workflows can capture key product information such as lot numbers and manufacturer dates, giving customers greater visibility and traceability across stored battery inventory.
Three-level storage
SKU’s approved three-level storage configuration allows battery-cell inventory to use vertical storage capacity rather than relying solely on floor-level storage, creating a more efficient use of permitted warehouse space.
Permitted battery storage
SKU operates permitted and approved space specifically configured for lithium-ion battery-cell storage. Our team evaluates each opportunity against the facility, product and operational requirements before inventory is accepted.
Frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know about working with SKU Distribution, from onboarding to shipping cutoffs.
Few do. The permitting, fire suppression investment, and personal liability keep most 3PLs out of it. We regularly get calls from warehouses that took battery inventory anyway and now have thirty days from the fire marshal to move it.
Both need to be controlled, not just monitored. Batteries can’t be held in space where temperature and humidity swing freely, which rules out a lot of standard warehouse footprint.
First manufactured, first out. Batteries are rotated by manufacture date rather than by receipt date, because cells that sit past their manufacturer date lose value or have to be destroyed. Our tracking captures lot, batch, and manufacture date to support it.
Yes, from small cells through large industrial units. Every program is reviewed against our permitted configuration and your product specs before we accept inventory.
Duties stay deferred while inventory sits in the zone and are only paid as goods leave for U.S. commerce, filed weekly on what actually shipped. Qualifying merchandise re-exported from the zone can generally leave without U.S. duties at all.
The facility is equipped for it. Affected pallets are moved to a dunk tank on site and, where possible, taken out of the building entirely.
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