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
Shipping from Tianjin to Nazaré
Tianjin to Nazaré
Bohai Sea · Bohai Strait · Taiwan Strait · Malacca Strait · Indian Ocean · Bab-el-Mandeb · Suez Canal · Strait of Gibraltar
- TianjinChina origin
- Bohai Sea
- Bohai Strait
- Taiwan Strait
- Malacca Strait
- Indian Ocean
- Bab-el-Mandeb
- Suez Canal
- Strait of Gibraltar
- NazaréPortugal
This route runs through Tianjin, with its Beijiang and Dongjiang terminals on the Bohai Bay, then follows a lane whose routing, Suez or Cape of Good Hope, is decided service by service; at the far end is the port of Nazaré.
Portugal adds its SILiAmb register to the EU Battery Regulation duties. 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
- Bohai Bay winter ice
- Tianjin Xingang export
- SILiAmb / APA registration
- Portuguese-language safety information
- Consignee EORI
Route profile
How Tianjin → Nazaré differs from other lanes
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 Tianjin → Nazaré shipments get held up: 5 points
Listed from loading in Tianjin to import into Portugal, each with what we do about it.
- Origin port
Winter ice at the Haihe mouth
Sea ice forms every winter in the Bohai Sea, and the Haihe estuary at Tianjin is among the severe areas. In winter 2021/22 China's national marine forecast centre expected the peak ice period from mid-January to mid-February, with floating ice reaching about 5 nautical miles out in Bohai Bay. Ice and cold spells slow port operations around the Chinese New Year shipping peak.
What Anxin does: For January and February sailings from Tianjin we add slack between stuffing and the DG cut-off and confirm the vessel's berthing window with the carrier the week before loading.
- Sea corridor
Drawn via Suez, sailed mostly via the Cape
The map on this page shows the corridor through Bab-el-Mandeb and Suez, but Sea-Intelligence figures for September 2026 put Red Sea routing on the Asia–Europe head-haul at 13–25%, with 27% for North Europe services and 57% for the Mediterranean. The service that calls at Nazaré decides between Suez and the Cape of Good Hope, and with it the distance, the waters and the possible transhipment ports.
What Anxin does: We ask the carrier to state the routing and any transhipment port on the booking confirmation, and we quote the two routings separately when both are on offer rather than mixing them.
- Import country
SILiAmb registration with APA and a licensed entity
Anyone placing batteries on the Portuguese market, importers included, registers with the Portuguese Environment Agency on SILiAmb and files an annual declaration by 31 March, counting batteries built into other products. Responsibility is met through a licensed management entity such as Electrão, or an individual system authorised by APA.
What Anxin does: We ask the Portuguese importer for its APA registration and management entity before booking, and list battery weights separately so its declaration is easy.
- Import country
The importer's name and address on the battery
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 Portugal importer's details need to reach the factory before printing.
What Anxin does: We pass the Portugal 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.
- Import country
Battery label from August 2026, QR code from February 2027
Two marking dates fall into current shipping plans for Portugal: the general label from 18 August 2026 and the QR code from 18 February 2027, which for EV, LMT and larger industrial batteries has to open the battery passport.
What Anxin does: Before booking we ask the Portugal importer to confirm the battery category and whether the label and QR-code elements are already on the goods, and compare carton photos with that answer.
Documents & compliance
What to have ready: Tianjin to Nazaré
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 Tianjin, before the box is loaded
- Container packing certificate signed by a certified packing inspector after supervised stuffing
- Transport-condition classification report where applicable
- Load plan showing even weight distribution (no more than 60% of the cargo weight in either half of the container length)
- EU declaration of conformity and CE marking photo from the manufacturer
- Importer name, trade name and postal address printed on battery or packaging
Carrier and voyage
- Routing (Suez or Cape of Good Hope) and any transhipment port stated on the booking confirmation
- Condition statement: new, used, damaged/defective (SP376) or for recycling (SP377)
- Consignee EORI and HS-level description to the ENS filer before loading
At the Portugal end
- APA (SILiAmb) registration and management entity of the Portuguese producer
- Haulier in Portugal briefed with UN number, class 9 and tunnel code (E) for the road leg
- Instructions and safety information in the language Portugal requires
Before you book
Match the details first
We line up UN numbers, model names and package counts across the Tianjin filings, the booking with the carrier and the documents for Portugal before the booking is confirmed, so that a mismatch is fixed at origin rather than discovered at Nazaré.
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
Risks on this route and who deals with them
| Risk | Where | Mitigation | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ice or cold spell slows berthing in mid-winter | Bohai Bay, Jan–Feb | Slack between stuffing and cut-off; berthing window reconfirmed | Carrier, monitored by Anxin |
| Service switches between Suez and Cape routing | Main voyage | Routing written on the booking; quotes kept separate per routing; packing assumes the longer voyage | Carrier, tracked by Anxin |
| Importer not registered on SILiAmb | Importer in Portugal | Registration confirmed before booking | Importer |
| Stock shipped without the label due from August 2026 | Importer in Portugal | Label status confirmed before booking | Manufacturer / importer |
Questions
Common questions on the Tianjin → Nazaré route
ADR, which the EU applies to domestic journeys through Directive 2008/68/EC. UN 3480 is class 9, transport category 2, with tunnel restriction code (E).
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.
The green channel Tianjin MSA announced in July 2026 is for new-energy-vehicle cargo. For battery containers we plan on the normal review and file early, because Tianjin MSA has said long reviews under the traditional model often cost firms their vessel cut-off.
References
Where these points come from
- Registo de Produtores de Produtos (Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente)
- Registo de Produtores: Baterias (apresentação, 30.01.2026) (Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente)
- 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)
- Inland transport of dangerous goods (summary of Directive 2008/68/EC) (EUR-Lex)
- Tianjin MSA opens a green channel for new-energy-vehicle shipments (Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA) Administration)
- Sea ice arrives: what are the impacts? (Bohai and northern Yellow Sea, winter 2021/22) (China Meteorological Administration (from China Natural Resources News))
Next step
From enquiry to import
- 1EnquiryCargo, origin, destination
- 2Documents checkUN 38.3, SDS, packing
- 3BookingAfter carrier acceptance
- 4HandoverAt Tianjin
- 5ImportClearance at Nazaré
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After you send it
We check carrier acceptance for Tianjin → Nazaré before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
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