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 Wilhelmshaven
Dalian to Wilhelmshaven
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
- WilhelmshavenGermany
From Dalian to Wilhelmshaven, cargo moves from Liaoning through Dalian's Dayaowan terminals, 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 Wilhelmshaven.
Germany expects the battery to be registered, labelled and pre-declared before it is loaded in China. 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
- Dalian Dayaowan export
- Winter ice & spring fog
- Consignee EORI
- Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE
- German-language safety information
Route profile
What sets Dalian → Wilhelmshaven apart
Asia – North & Atlantic Europe
The map shows the Suez corridor, but in September 2026 most Asia–North Europe capacity still sails round the Cape of Good Hope.
Where this route gets difficult
Where Dalian → Wilhelmshaven shipments get held up: 5 points
Listed from loading in Dalian to import into Germany, each with what we do about it.
- Origin port
Sea fog off Dalian, April to July
Sea fog is one of the main marine hazards of the Yellow and Bohai Seas according to the China Meteorological Administration, concentrated between April and July and with a serious effect on shipping. A vessel held at anchor by fog can arrive late enough to push a box beyond the sailing its documents name.
What Anxin does: In the fog season we avoid tight stuffing-to-cut-off gaps and keep the filing data ready to amend if the vessel changes.
- Sea corridor
The inbound leg's emissions now count under EU ETS
Because Wilhelmshaven 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
ICS2 entry summary before loading, not before arrival
EU pre-arrival security filing moved to ICS2 Release 3: sea cargo needs a complete Entry Summary Declaration, and forwarders issuing house bills of lading have had to file or pass house-level data since 1 April 2025. For deep-sea containers the ENS is due 24 hours before loading at the departure port, and carriers apply 'no manifest, no load'. A missing EORI number is enough for the filing to be rejected.
What Anxin does: We collect the consignee's EORI number, a goods description at HS level and the house-level parties at booking, and make sure they reach whoever files the ENS ahead of the Dalian loading cut-off.
- Import country
CE marking and a declaration of conformity in the right language
Since 18 August 2024 a battery sold in the EU needs the CE marking and an EU declaration of conformity from its manufacturer. The declaration has to be available in the language Germany requires, and the importer is the one who must check both before the goods are released for sale.
What Anxin does: We ask the manufacturer in China for the declaration of conformity and a photo of the CE marking on the battery or its packaging before loading, and pass them to the Germany importer. We check that the documents exist and match the goods; we do not assess conformity.
- Import country
Built-in portable batteries must be user-replaceable from February 2027
From 18 February 2027, Article 11 requires portable batteries built into appliances to be readily removable and replaceable by the end-user with commercially available tools, without heat or solvents, apart from limited derogations. Appliances shipped to Germany for sale after that date need a design that meets the rule.
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.
Documents & compliance
Checklist for Dalian → Wilhelmshaven
Test reports, safety data sheets and import certificates come from the shipper, factory and importer, not from Anxin; our part is to review them before booking.
Before loading in Dalian
- EU declaration of conformity and CE marking photo from the manufacturer
- 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
Carrier and voyage
- Routing (Suez or Cape of Good Hope) and any transhipment port stated on the booking confirmation
- UN 38.3 test summary for every cell and battery type
- Dangerous goods declaration with UN number (3480 / 3481 / 3090 / 3091), proper shipping name and packing instruction (P903, or P908/P911 for damaged)
For the importer in Germany
- Consignee EORI number and the party filing the ICS2 entry summary
- 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
One consistent file
A document that is present but inconsistent holds a booking as surely as a missing one: the UN number, model name or carton count reads differently in the Dalian export filings, the carrier booking and the Germany import papers. We compare all three before confirming space.
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 Wilhelmshaven, and who acts
| Risk | Where | Mitigation | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fog hold delays the vessel; filings need amending | Yellow Sea, Apr–Jul | Amendment-ready filing data | Anxin with the declarant |
| Emissions surcharge changes between quote and sailing | EU port call | Surcharge shown as a separate line with its basis | Carrier, checked by Anxin |
| ENS not lodged in time | Loading port in China | House-level data and EORI collected at booking and passed to the filer ahead of the loading cut-off | Anxin with the ENS filer |
| Declaration of conformity missing or not in the required language | Importer in Germany | Declaration and CE photo collected before loading | Manufacturer / importer |
Questions
Questions about shipping from Dalian to Wilhelmshaven
The CE marking on the battery and the manufacturer's EU declaration of conformity, which must be available in the language Germany requires. Both have applied since 18 August 2024.
It depends on the service. In September 2026 most Asia–North Europe capacity still sailed round the Cape of Good Hope; Sea-Intelligence put the Red Sea share for North Europe vessels at 27%. We ask the carrier to confirm the routing on the booking and quote each routing separately.
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
Where these points come from
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 on batteries and waste batteries (consolidated text) (EUR-Lex / Publications Office of the EU)
- ICS2 Release 3: Prepare your business for sending goods to or via the EU by sea and inland waterways (European Commission, DG TAXUD (leaflet KP0423828ENN))
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 on batteries and waste batteries (ELI) (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))
- Sea fog in the Yellow and Bohai Seas (fog season mainly April–July) (China Meteorological Administration (from Guangming Daily))
Next step
From enquiry to import
- 1EnquiryCargo, origin, destination
- 2Documents checkUN 38.3, SDS, packing
- 3BookingAfter carrier acceptance
- 4HandoverAt Dalian
- 5ImportClearance at Wilhelmshaven
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After you send it
We check carrier acceptance for Dalian → Wilhelmshaven before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
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