Dalian (Dayaowan)
North-east China's battery gateway at Dayaowan, with a small but growing lithium export flow, a local MSA that has named misdeclaration as its main problem, and both winter ice and spring fog.
Europe · sea freight from Dalian
Shipping from Dalian to Bremen
Dalian to Bremen
Yellow Sea · Taiwan Strait · Malacca Strait · Indian Ocean · Bab-el-Mandeb · Suez Canal · Strait of Gibraltar · English Channel
- DalianChina origin
- Yellow Sea
- Taiwan Strait
- Malacca Strait
- Indian Ocean
- Bab-el-Mandeb
- Suez Canal
- Strait of Gibraltar
- English Channel
- BremenGermany
From Dalian to Bremen, cargo moves through Dayaowan, crosses a voyage that may run through Suez as drawn or round the Cape, depending on the service, and is discharged at the port of Bremen.
The German side adds producer registration with stiftung ear and the EU Battery Regulation's labelling calendar. The 5 points below are particular to this lane; each comes with what we do and the paperwork it touches.
What we need to start
- Winter ice & spring fog
- Dalian Dayaowan export
- Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE
- German-language safety information
- EU declaration of conformity
Route profile
The Dalian → Bremen route in brief
Germany
EU Battery Regulation labelling and QR-code dates, stiftung ear registration under the BattDG, and an ICS2 entry summary that must exist before the box is loaded.
Where this route gets difficult
5 pain points from Dalian to Bremen
Loading port first, then the sea leg, then Bremen and the Germany market.
- Origin port
Ice in the northern Yellow Sea from January
Sea ice forms every winter in the Bohai Sea and northern Yellow Sea. In winter 2021/22 China's marine forecast centre expected floating ice about 15 nautical miles out in the northern Yellow Sea, where Dalian's Dayaowan lies, and about 60 in Liaodong Bay, peaking from mid-January to mid-February.
What Anxin does: For January–February sailings from Dalian we allow extra time between stuffing and the DG cut-off and reconfirm the vessel schedule the week before loading.
- Sea corridor
The inbound leg's emissions now count under EU ETS
Because Bremen is an EU port, container ships of 5,000 GT or more calling there fall under the EU Emissions Trading System, which covers half the emissions of the voyage from China. Lines surrendered allowances for 70% of those emissions in 2025 and must cover 100% from 2027, a cost that can reach shippers as a surcharge.
What Anxin does: We ask for the emissions surcharge to be shown as its own line in the quote, with the basis the carrier uses, so that successive quotes can be compared like for like.
- Import country
stiftung ear registration and OfH participation under the BattDG
Whoever first makes batteries available in Germany is the producer and must hold a registration with stiftung ear for each brand and battery category. A non-German brand cannot register itself; it needs one authorised representative in Germany. Since 1 January 2026 every category must also be linked to an approved producer responsibility organisation (OfH), and registrations that were not updated by 15 January 2026 were withdrawn by law.
What Anxin does: We ask who acts as producer for this shipment (importer, brand owner or authorised representative) and for the Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE before the container is booked, so the question is answered while the goods are still in China.
- Import country
User-replaceable batteries in appliances from 18 February 2027
Article 11 of the Battery Regulation says that from 18 February 2027 portable batteries inside appliances must be readily removable and replaceable by the end-user using commercially available tools, without heat or solvents, except under limited derogations. Appliances sold in Germany after that date need a design that complies.
What Anxin does: When appliances with built-in batteries are booked for Germany we point the importer to the February 2027 date so the manufacturer answers the design question before shipment; we do not assess compliance.
- Import country
Due diligence on battery raw materials from August 2027
Regulation (EU) 2025/1561 pushed the Battery Regulation's due diligence duties for cobalt, lithium, nickel and natural graphite back to 18 August 2027 and gave the Commission until 26 July 2026 for its guidelines. Buyers in Germany are already collecting the supply-chain information they will need.
What Anxin does: We pass the Germany buyer's due diligence questions to the manufacturer and keep their answers with the shipment file; the policy itself remains the producer's responsibility.
Documents & compliance
What to have ready: Dalian to Bremen
These documents come from the shipper, the manufacturer and the importer. Anxin checks them against each other; it does not issue test reports, safety data sheets or import certificates.
In Dalian, before the box is loaded
- Importer name, trade name and postal address printed on battery or packaging
- Annex V safety documentation confirmed for stationary storage systems
- Substance declaration covering mercury, cadmium and lead limits
- Safety data sheet and dangerous goods safe-carriage declaration for the MSA cargo report
- Customs packaging use-appraisal result for the dangerous goods packaging (with the maker's performance appraisal)
For the carrier and the voyage
- Routing (Suez or Cape of Good Hope) and any transhipment port stated on the booking confirmation
- Dangerous goods declaration with UN number (3480 / 3481 / 3090 / 3091), proper shipping name and packing instruction (P903, or P908/P911 for damaged)
- Lithium battery mark (SP188 cargo) or class 9 labels and placards
At the Germany end
- Producer / authorised representative for Germany and the Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE for each brand and battery category
- Battery Regulation label / QR-code status, and battery passport where the battery is EV, LMT or industrial above 2 kWh
- Instructions and safety information in German in the retail packaging
Before you book
Send the file once, complete
Most delays on this route start with a document that exists but does not match: a UN number, a model name or a package count that differs between the Dalian filings, the carrier booking and the Germany import file. We check the three against each other before the booking is confirmed.
Carriers we book with
Our booking panel; availability on this lane and acceptance of the declared UN numbers are confirmed for each booking. It does not mean that a listed carrier runs a direct service on this route. Carrier choice depends on the trade lane, cargo classification and each carrier's dangerous-goods acceptance at booking. The final carrier is confirmed on the booking.
Risk & mitigation
What could go wrong from Dalian to Bremen, and who acts
| Risk | Where | Mitigation | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ice delays berthing in mid-winter | Northern Yellow Sea, Jan–Feb | Extra time before cut-off; schedule reconfirmed | Carrier, monitored by Anxin |
| Emissions surcharge changes between quote and sailing | EU port call | Surcharge shown as a separate line with its basis | Carrier, checked by Anxin |
| Batteries arrive without a valid German producer registration | Placing on the German market after clearance | Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE and OfH status requested before booking; shipment planned only once the producer role is clear | Importer / producer |
Questions
Common questions on the Dalian → Bremen route
Under ICS2 Release 3 the entry summary declaration for deep-sea containers is due 24 hours before loading at the departure port, and carriers do not load boxes without it. The consignee's EORI number and the house bill of lading parties are part of that data set.
Ships of 5,000 GT and above calling at EU ports are in the EU Emissions Trading System, covering 50% of the emissions of a voyage from outside the EU. Lines must surrender allowances for 70% of 2025 emissions and 100% from 2027, and may pass the cost on as a surcharge.
Sea ice forms every winter in the northern Yellow Sea; in 2021/22 it was forecast to reach about 15 nautical miles out there, peaking mid-January to mid-February. We plan extra time for those weeks.
References
Regulations and port sources cited
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 on batteries and waste batteries (consolidated text) (EUR-Lex / Publications Office of the EU)
- Applying for a battery registration at stiftung ear (stiftung elektro-altgeräte register (stiftung ear))
- Regulation (EU) 2025/1561 amending Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 as regards due diligence obligations (EUR-Lex / Publications Office of the EU)
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 concerning batteries and waste batteries (Official Journal PDF) (EUR-Lex / Publications Office of the EU)
- Reducing emissions from the shipping sector (European Commission (DG Climate Action))
- Sea ice arrives: what are the impacts? (Bohai and northern Yellow Sea, winter 2021/22) (China Meteorological Administration (from China Natural Resources News))
- Export dangerous goods packaging inspection: service guide (Chinese) (General Administration of Customs of China (Lanzhou Customs service guide))
Next step
From enquiry to import
- 1EnquiryCargo, origin, destination
- 2Documents checkUN 38.3, SDS, packing
- 3BookingAfter carrier acceptance
- 4HandoverAt Dalian
- 5ImportClearance at Bremen
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After you send it
We check carrier acceptance for Dalian → Bremen before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
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