Buying medium-voltage switchgear from China: editions, type tests and the EU SF6 rules

This guide covers AC metal-enclosed switchgear rated above 1 kV and up to 52 kV, ring main units included, bought from Chinese manufacturers for distribution networks, industrial plants and energy projects. Sinospect checked the standards and rules below at their sources on 26 September 2026.

The standard and its edition

IEC 62271-200 covers AC metal-enclosed switchgear and controlgear rated above 1 kV and up to 52 kV, whatever the insulation: air, SF6, oil or solid. The third edition, published in 2021, replaced the 2011 edition, and Amendment 1 followed in 2024. It is read with IEC 62271-1, the common specifications, current as edition 2.1 of October 2021, and with the device standards it cites: IEC 62271-100 for circuit-breakers, IEC 62271-103 for switches and IEC 62271-105 for switch-fuse combinations, all revised in 2021.

In China, the national standard is GB/T 3906-2020 for 3.6 kV to 40.5 kV, in force since 1 October 2020. It is a modified adoption of IEC 62271-200:2011, the previous edition. A revision that adopts the 2021 edition with its 2024 amendment was out for public comment in September 2026, under plan 20257009-T-604. A type test to GB/T 3906-2020 is a test to a standard built on the 2011 text; a tender that names IEC 62271-200:2021 calls for a report to that edition.

What changed in the 2021 edition

As summarised by Intertek:

• its clauses follow IEC 62271-1:2017;
• internal arc tests on pole-mounted switchgear moved to IEC 62271-214:2019, assemblies with a solid-insulation enclosure are covered by IEC 62271-201, and gas-filled compartments designed above 300 kPa are tested to IEC 62271-203;
• internal arc tests are made in all high-voltage compartments of a functional unit, with stricter acceptance criteria, for example openings of 50 mm at most in the classified sides up to a height of 2,000 mm;
• IEC TR 62271-307:2015 is referenced for extending the validity of type-test results to variants;
• an annex explains the loss of service continuity (LSC) categories.

Ratings and classifications the offer names

Beyond the rated voltage, the rated normal current and the short-time withstand current with its duration, IEC 62271-200 uses three classifications:

• IAC, the internal arc classification: the sides of the switchgear it protects and the arc current and duration it was tested for;
• LSC, loss of service continuity: which parts stay in service when a compartment is opened;
• the partition class: PM where metal partitions and shutters, earthed, separate an opened compartment from live parts; PI where one or more of them is insulating material.

Each classification is declared on the basis of type tests, so the type-test report is where it is checked.

The type-test report

The report to request covers the exact configuration quoted: rated voltage, current, short-circuit current and duration, IAC class, insulating medium and the arrangement of functional units. It names the laboratory, its accreditation, the date and the edition of the standard applied. For variants, the 2021 edition refers to IEC TR 62271-307:2015 on extending type-test validity; China publishes its own guide, GB/T 38658-2020.

STL, the forum of short-circuit testing organisations, lists 11 members in its June 2025 directory: CESI (Italy), CPRI (India), ESEF (France), JSTC (Japan), KEMA (the Netherlands), KERI (South Korea), PEHLA (Germany), SATS (Norway), STLNA (USA), VEIKI (Hungary) and ZKU (Czech Republic). Every member is outside China, so a buyer asks where a Chinese maker’s type tests were run.

SF6 and other fluorinated gases: the EU dates

Regulation (EU) 2024/573, Article 13(9), prohibits putting into operation switchgear that uses fluorinated greenhouse gases as insulating or breaking medium, on these dates:

Article 13 also sets exceptions: orders placed before 11 March 2024; media with a global warming potential below 1,000 where a procurement procedure drew too few gas-free bids (in the first two years, bids from one manufacturer at most; after that, none); media of 1,000 or more, SF6 included, only where every bid received used such a medium; and an ecodesign life-cycle route. Chinese makers list ring main units with dry-air or solid insulation and vacuum interrupters alongside SF6 designs. Outside the EU, the utility or project specification sets the insulating medium.

Routine tests and the factory acceptance test

Every unit is routine-tested at the factory; the main-circuit resistance measured in type testing is the reference for the routine test. A factory acceptance test lets the buyer witness these tests on the actual units before shipment: see switchgear FAT witnessing and the FAT checklist builder.

What moves the price and the lead time

• the rating and the short-circuit level;
• the IAC class and the arc duration tested;
• the insulating medium: air, SF6, dry air or solid;
• the functional units: circuit-breaker, load-break switch or switch-fuse;
• protection relays, instrument transformers and control wiring;
• the test regime: independent type tests, witnessed routine tests;
• documentation, language, packing and the delivery term.

A BOQ that lists these per functional unit gets quotations that can be compared line by line: see preparing a BOQ or specification.

Buyer checklist

Before award

• IEC 62271-200:2021 with Amendment 1:2024 and IEC 62271-1 named in the specification, with the ratings, IAC, LSC and the partition class (PM or PI).
• The type-test report for the configuration quoted: laboratory, accreditation, date, edition.
• The insulating and breaking medium, checked against the EU dates or the utility specification.
• Relays, instrument transformers and interlocks named by make and model.

Before shipment

• Routine test records for each unit.
• The factory acceptance test witnessed where the contract provides for it.
• Drawings, manuals and the spare parts list in the destination language.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

Checked at the sources on 26 September 2026.

• IEC: IEC 62271-200:2021 Amendment 1:2024, Intertek, IEC 62271-200 edition 3.0:2021 white paper
• China: GB/T 3906-2020, revision plan 20257009-T-604 and GB/T 38658-2020 (China’s national standards portal)
• European Union: Regulation (EU) 2024/573, Article 13
• Testing: STL membership directory