The US Postal Service will this week resume shipping goods with lithium batteries, such as mobilephones, ready for the Christmas present-giving season next month.
The US postal operator said that from November 15 post offices will begin accepting packagescontaining lithium batteries installed in electronic devices bound for many internationaldestinations, including Army (APO), Fleet (FPO) and Diplomatic Post Office (DPO) locations.
The move ends a ban on international shipping of such goods that entered force in the US inMay this year for safety and security reasons in line with international regulations. Lithium cellsand batteries have been considered dangerous goods and were thus prohibited from travelling by airin the international mail system.
In May, however, the Universal Postal Union (UPU) and the International Civil AviationOrganisation (ICAO) agreed on new rules permitting air transportation of postal items containinglithium batteries that are correctly installed in electronic devices such as mobile phones orlaptop computers from January 1, 2013 onwards.
“The Postal Service is pleased to be back in the business of shipping gifts containinglithium batteries internationally and to our service members overseas,” said Giselle Valera, vicepresident, Global Business. “Postal employees are gearing up for a busy holiday season, and we’reready to help customers send care packages to loved ones around the world.”
“The Postal Service is always working to make package shipping more and more convenient,”Valera added. “Customers can visit the Post Office that’s always open, 24/7, usps.com, to shipholiday care packages without ever having to leave the comfort of home or office.”
Postal operators have been pressing legal changes on transportation of lithium batteries sothey can offer broader services to ship mobile phones, computers and other electronic devicesthrough the air mail network.
