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North America · sea freight from Tianjin

Shipping from Tianjin to Prudhoe Bay

Tianjin to Prudhoe Bay

Bohai Sea · Bohai Strait · Korea Strait · Sea of Japan · Tsugaru Strait · Bering Strait · Chukchi Sea · Beaufort Sea

Sea corridor illustration: Tianjin to Prudhoe Bay, United States Simplified map with a curved corridor from Tianjin via Bohai Sea, Bohai Strait, Korea Strait, Sea of Japan, Tsugaru Strait, Bering Strait, Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea to Prudhoe Bay. Illustration only; not a vessel track or schedule. CHINARUSSIACENTRAL ASIASIBERIANORTH AMERICANORTH PACIFIC Korea StraitBering Strait TianjinCHINA ORIGIN Prudhoe BayUNITED STATES TianjinBOHAI SEAYELLOW SEASHANDONGDEPARTURE AREA
  1. TianjinChina origin
  2. Bohai Sea
  3. Bohai Strait
  4. Korea Strait
  5. Sea of Japan
  6. Tsugaru Strait
  7. Bering Strait
  8. Chukchi Sea
  9. Beaufort Sea
  10. Prudhoe BayUnited States
Geographic corridor illustration only, not a vessel track, port-call list or sailing schedule. The loading terminal, carrier, transshipment and dates are confirmed per shipment.

From Tianjin to Prudhoe Bay, cargo moves through Tianjin, with its Beijiang and Dongjiang terminals on the Bohai Bay, crosses a North Pacific crossing with no chokepoint but real winter-storm exposure, and is discharged at the port of Prudhoe Bay.

The US side adds a 25% Section 301 duty line, forced-labour scrutiny of lithium supply chains and an ISF deadline that falls before loading. This page sets out 6 points specific to this route, how Anxin handles each one and which documents to prepare.

What we need to start

  • Factory-supervised loading
  • Bohai Bay winter ice
  • Supply-chain tracing file
  • HTS code 8507.60
  • ISF filer
Ask about this route United States ports from Tianjin

Route profile

How Tianjin → Prudhoe Bay differs from other lanes

Origin port

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.

Import country

United States

Two filings before loading, a Section 301 line set by classification, UFLPA supply-chain questions and a 15-day General Order clock after discharge.

Container gantry cranes at a Tianjin port container terminal
A container ship under way off the Guatemalan coast

Where this route gets difficult

Where Tianjin → Prudhoe Bay shipments get held up: 6 points

Listed from loading in Tianjin to import into United States, each with what we do about it.

  1. Origin port

    At Tianjin the port slot is booked before the truck leaves the factory

    Tianjin Customs runs a 'supervised factory loading, direct loading on port arrival' model for dangerous goods: officers oversee stuffing at the factory, the declaration goes in early through the single window, and the container enters the port in a slot booked on the customs–port platform and goes straight to the ship. Any inspection happens in closed yards inside the Beijiang and Dongjiang terminals. The time saved depends on the stuffing date, the slot and the declared data all matching.

    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.

  2. 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.

  3. Sea corridor

    Winter storms with hurricane-force winds

    NOAA's Ocean Prediction Center found hurricane-force winds (64 knots and above) in North Pacific mid-latitude storms in every month from October to April, peaking in December, with 15 to 23 such storms per season in its 2001–2004 records. They are not typhoons, so they do not follow the tropical calendar.

    What Anxin does: For October–April sailings we check blocking and bracing on stuffing photos before sealing and confirm the full DG data are on the manifest.

  4. Import country

    AMS: the manifest CBP sees before the ship leaves Tianjin

    Under 19 CFR 4.7 the carrier's cargo declaration must be in CBP's Automated Manifest System 24 hours before loading abroad. Without it, or with inaccurate data, the permit to unlade the container at Prudhoe Bay can be delayed or refused.

    What Anxin does: We give the carrier or NVOCC the final cargo description, HS code, UN number and package count before the documentation cut-off in Tianjin, so the AMS filing and the DG manifest say the same thing.

  5. Import country

    A monitored US emergency number for the truck leg

    The IMDG waiver in 49 CFR 171.25(d)(2) spares the emergency telephone number only when cargo stays on the ship or moves between vessels without using a public highway. Once the container is trucked out of Prudhoe Bay, the shipping paper needs a numeric emergency response number that is monitored at all times and answered by someone who knows the material; an answering service that calls back does not count. Goods shipped as 'Battery powered equipment' are exempt.

    What Anxin does: Before sailing we confirm who provides the 24-hour number for the US leg, usually the importer's emergency response provider, and put it with the contract reference on the DG documents we send to the trucker.

  6. Import country

    Unentered battery containers go to General Order after 15 days

    A container landed at Prudhoe Bay without a release permit may stay at the terminal only until the 15th calendar day. The carrier must then notify CBP and a bonded general order warehouse, which moves and stores the goods at the consignee's risk and expense (19 CFR 4.37). Not every general order warehouse can take Class 9 battery cargo, and where specialized storage is missing the port director decides where it goes.

    What Anxin does: We check with the importer's broker that the entry can be filed before arrival at Prudhoe Bay, and chase any missing invoice or HTS detail while the ship is still at sea.

Locator map of Prudhoe Bay, United StatesPrudhoe Bay
Locator map in the same projection as the corridor map; the dot marks the listed port position (70.33°N, 148.42°W).
Containers on rail wagons next to a terminal in Vancouver

Documents & compliance

Documents to line up for Tianjin → Prudhoe Bay

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

Before loading in Tianjin

  • Stuffing date, port-entry slot and DG cut-off at Tianjin agreed in that order
  • Customs packaging use-appraisal result for the dangerous goods packaging (with the maker's performance appraisal)
  • 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)

For the carrier and the voyage

  • Stuffing photos before, during and after packing, checked for blocking and bracing
  • SP188 cartons: US 'forbidden aboard passenger aircraft' marking or CAO label
  • UN 38.3 test summary for every cell and battery type

For import into United States

  • 24-hour emergency response number (and provider reference) for the US road leg
  • Importer of record and the licensed customs broker who will file the entry
  • ISF filer named; stuffing location and consolidator sent right after packing
A cylindrical lithium-ion cell held between two fingers
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 Tianjin export filings, the carrier booking and the United States 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 Tianjin to Prudhoe Bay, and who acts

RiskWhereMitigationWho acts
Ice or cold spell slows berthing in mid-winterBohai Bay, Jan–FebSlack between stuffing and cut-off; berthing window reconfirmedCarrier, monitored by Anxin
Box sent to the terminal inspection yard because declared data do not matchBeijiang / Dongjiang terminalsDeclaration, packing certificate and container number cross-checked before truckingAnxin
Heavy-weather damage in a winter stormNorth Pacific, Oct–AprCINS stuffing checksPacking site, checked by Anxin
Permit to unlade delayed for a late or inaccurate AMS manifestPort of dischargeFinal cargo data given to the carrier before the cut-offCarrier / NVOCC, with data from Anxin
Truck stopped without a monitored emergency numberRoad leg from the portEmergency response provider confirmed before sailingImporter, checked by Anxin

Questions

Tianjin → Prudhoe Bay: questions we are asked

Yes. Under 49 CFR 171.25(b)(3), SP188 packages of UN3480 or UN3090 need the 'FORBIDDEN FOR TRANSPORT ABOARD PASSENGER AIRCRAFT' marking or a Cargo Aircraft Only label, and so do packages of batteries packed with or contained in equipment above 5 kg net. We check for it on carton photos before stuffing.

Weather is the main risk on this crossing: NOAA recorded hurricane-force North Pacific storms from October to April, most often in December. We tighten the packing checks for those sailings.

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

Official sources for this page

  1. 19 CFR 149.2 – Importer security filing: requirement and time of transmission (eCFR / CBP)
  2. 19 CFR 4.7: inward foreign manifest; advance filing of cargo declaration (24 hours before lading) (Legal Information Institute (e-CFR text))
  3. 49 CFR 171.25 – Additional requirements for the use of the IMDG Code (eCFR / PHMSA)
  4. 49 CFR 172.604: Emergency response telephone number (eCFR / PHMSA)
  5. Hurricane force extratropical cyclones observed using QuikSCAT (Mariners Weather Log 49-1) (NOAA Ocean Prediction Center)
  6. Tianjin Customs export dangerous goods service page: supervised factory loading, direct loading on port arrival (Tianjin Customs)
  7. Sea ice arrives: what are the impacts? (Bohai and northern Yellow Sea, winter 2021/22) (China Meteorological Administration (from China Natural Resources News))
  8. Export dangerous goods packaging inspection: service guide (Chinese) (General Administration of Customs of China (Lanzhou Customs service guide))

Next step

From enquiry to import

  1. 1EnquiryCargo, origin, destination
  2. 2Documents checkUN 38.3, SDS, packing
  3. 3BookingAfter carrier acceptance
  4. 4HandoverAt Tianjin
  5. 5ImportClearance at Prudhoe Bay
Each step is confirmed in writing; an enquiry does not create a booking.

Ask about Tianjin → Prudhoe Bay

Origin and destination are filled in; add the cargo facts you have.

Sending this form starts a review; it does not confirm carriage. Full enquiry form

After you send it

We check carrier acceptance for Tianjin → Prudhoe Bay before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.

All destinations from Tianjin · United States ports

Trailers backed up to the loading docks of a warehouse

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