Tianjin (Xingang)
North China's main container gateway, where Tianjin Customs lets DG containers be inspected at the factory and loaded on arrival within a booked port slot, and where the Bohai Bay freezes at its edges in mid-winter.
Europe · sea freight from Tianjin
Tianjin to Dieppe
Bohai Sea · Bohai Strait · Malacca Strait · Indian Ocean · Bab-el-Mandeb · Suez Canal · Strait of Gibraltar · English Channel
Lithium batteries for Dieppe go out of Tianjin's Xingang terminals, where customs can supervise stuffing at the factory and the box goes straight to the ship on a booked slot. On the way they face a voyage that may run through Suez as drawn or round the Cape, depending on the service, and they arrive at the port of Dieppe.
The French side checks the producer's unique identifier (IDU) as well as the EU battery rules. Below are 5 route-specific points to plan for, what we do about each, and the documents to have ready before booking.
What we need to start
Route profile
North China's main container gateway, where Tianjin Customs lets DG containers be inspected at the factory and loaded on arrival within a booked port slot, and where the Bohai Bay freezes at its edges in mid-winter.
An IDU from SYDEREP for the batteries stream, eco-organisme membership now required for every battery category, and the EU-wide CE and label duties.


Where this route gets difficult
In the order the cargo meets them: at the loading port, at sea, at Dieppe and at customs in France.
Under Tianjin Customs' 'supervised factory loading, direct loading on port arrival' model, officers supervise stuffing at the factory, the declaration is lodged early through the single window, and the box enters the port in a slot booked on the customs–port platform before going straight to the ship; inspections take place in closed yards at the Beijiang and Dongjiang terminals. The gain holds only if stuffing date, slot and declared data agree.
What Anxin does: We fix the stuffing date against the vessel's DG cut-off first, then book the entry slot, and check that the declaration, the packing certificate and the container number agree before the truck leaves, so the box is not diverted to an inspection yard for a data mismatch.
Because Dieppe 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.
The Battery Regulation asks the importer to put its own name, registered trade name or trade mark and postal address, with a single contact point, on the battery. Only when the battery's size or nature makes that impossible may the details move to the packaging or an accompanying document, so a France importer's details need to reach the factory before printing.
What Anxin does: We pass the France importer's name and address block to the manufacturer before the goods are packed in China and check carton or battery photos for it before loading.
Importers must make sure batteries come with instructions and safety information in a language end-users in France easily understand, as that Member State decides. Printed inserts and carton text are far easier to change before the goods are packed in China.
What Anxin does: We ask the importer which language France requires and check carton and insert photos against it before loading.
Annex I of the Battery Regulation caps mercury at 0.0005 %, cadmium at 0.002 % and lead at 0.01 % by weight in portable batteries, and the lead limit has applied since 18 August 2024. Market surveillance in France can ask the importer to show that the goods meet these limits.
What Anxin does: We ask the manufacturer for its substance declaration or test report reference and file it with the shipping documents for the France importer; we do not test batteries.

Documents & compliance
Anxin reviews documents supplied by the shipper, manufacturer and importer; it does not issue test reports, safety data sheets or import certificates.

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 Tianjin filings, the carrier booking and the France 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
| Risk | Where | Mitigation | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box sent to the terminal inspection yard because declared data do not match | Beijiang / Dongjiang terminals | Declaration, packing certificate and container number cross-checked before trucking | Anxin |
| Emissions surcharge changes between quote and sailing | EU port call | Surcharge shown as a separate line with its basis | Carrier, checked by Anxin |
| Importer details missing from battery and packaging | Importer in France | Address block sent to the factory before packing | Manufacturer / importer |
Questions
24 hours before the container is loaded in China, not before it reaches Dieppe. Without it carriers do not load the box, and a filing without an EORI number is rejected.
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.
Tianjin Customs offers a 'supervised factory loading, direct loading on port arrival' model: stuffing is supervised at the factory, the box enters the port in a booked slot and is loaded directly. Whether a given shipment can use it depends on the customs arrangement for the exporter and the port slot; we check both when you book.
References
Next step
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We check carrier acceptance for Tianjin → Dieppe before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
All destinations from Tianjin · France ports

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