Xiamen (Haicang / Songyu)
Fujian's battery gateway, handling more than 90% of the province's lithium battery exports, with 10-minute online packaging appraisal for compliant products and the Taiwan Strait's winter monsoon on the doorstep.
Europe · sea freight from Xiamen
Shipping from Xiamen to Oulu
Xiamen to Oulu
South China Sea · Malacca Strait · Indian Ocean · Bab-el-Mandeb · Suez Canal · Strait of Gibraltar · English Channel · Danish Straits
- XiamenChina origin
- South China Sea
- Malacca Strait
- Indian Ocean
- Bab-el-Mandeb
- Suez Canal
- Strait of Gibraltar
- English Channel
- Danish Straits
- OuluFinland
This route runs out of Xiamen's Haicang and Songyu terminals on the Taiwan Strait, then follows a long Europe voyage extended through the Danish straits into the Baltic; at the far end is the port of Oulu.
Finland keeps its battery producers in a national register at the Finnish Supervisory Agency. 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
- Taiwan Strait monsoon Oct–Apr
- Xiamen export
- Consignee EORI
- EU declaration of conformity
- Finnish producer register entry
Route profile
What sets Xiamen → Oulu apart
Asia – Baltic via the Danish straits
The Baltic is reached only through the Danish straits, where deep-draught ships are advised to take pilots, and its northern ports set ice-class restrictions every winter.
Where this route gets difficult
5 points to plan for on the Xiamen → Oulu route
In the order the cargo meets them: at the loading port, at sea, at Oulu and at customs in Finland.
- Origin port
Strong winds in the Taiwan Strait from day one
Leaving Xiamen, ships are in the Taiwan Strait at once. A Chinese government weather account says the strait's funnel effect adds 1–2 Beaufort levels to the wind, and that the north-east monsoon of winter and spring brings force 7 or more on about two days in three. Lashing on container ships should be secured accordingly.
What Anxin does: From October to April we apply the CINS blocking and bracing checks strictly on stuffing photos before sealing.
- Origin port
Pre-loading meeting and a ship plan at Xiamen
For large battery consignments Xiamen MSA offers pre-review of key DG documents, a pre-loading meeting where ship, cargo owner, terminal and agent agree deck stowage and emergency measures, and a 'one ship, one plan' checklist from gate-in to departure. In June 2026 it reported 104 energy-storage containers of 36 tonnes each loaded on a multipurpose ship for Houston.
What Anxin does: We send the key documents for pre-review before the formal filing and bring the stowage and emergency details the meeting will ask for.
- Sea corridor
Through the Danish straits, possibly on a feeder
Cargo for Oulu has to pass the Danish straits. IMO recommends pilots on Route T for ships of 11 m draught or more, and the Danish Maritime Authority reports ships that ignore the recommendation to their flag state. Whether the box stays on one vessel or is transhipped onto a feeder at a North Sea port, each vessel has to accept the UN numbers.
What Anxin does: We ask the carrier to name any transhipment port and the feeder operator on the booking and confirm DG acceptance for that leg as well as the mainline.
- Import country
Safety documentation for stationary storage systems
Since 18 August 2024 a stationary battery energy storage system placed on the EU market must be safe in normal operation, and its technical documentation must show testing against the Annex V safety parameters, from thermal shock and short-circuit protection to over-discharge and thermal propagation. Buyers of ESS cabinets in Finland increasingly ask for that file before delivery.
What Anxin does: For ESS cabinets and racks bound for Finland we ask the manufacturer to confirm that the Annex V test documentation exists before booking and note the answer in the shipment file.
- Import country
Substance limits for portable batteries
For portable batteries, Annex I sets maximum levels of 0.0005 % mercury, 0.002 % cadmium and 0.01 % lead by weight, the lead limit applying since 18 August 2024. The importer in Finland may be asked by market surveillance to demonstrate compliance.
What Anxin does: We ask the manufacturer for its substance declaration or test report reference and file it with the shipping documents for the Finland importer; we do not test batteries.
Documents & compliance
Documents to line up for Xiamen → Oulu
Anxin reviews documents supplied by the shipper, manufacturer and importer; it does not issue test reports, safety data sheets or import certificates.
In Xiamen, before the box is loaded
- For ESS: carriage type (container ship or multipurpose), class 9 terminal and pre-voyage meeting confirmed
- 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)
- Container packing certificate signed by a certified packing inspector after supervised stuffing
For the carrier and the voyage
- Transhipment port, feeder operator and feeder DG acceptance named on the booking
- Lithium battery mark (SP188 cargo) or class 9 labels and placards
- Condition statement: new, used, damaged/defective (SP376) or for recycling (SP377)
For import into Finland
- Instructions and safety information in the language Finland requires
- Haulier in Finland briefed with UN number, class 9 and tunnel code (E) for the road leg
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 Xiamen filings, the carrier booking and the Finland 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 Xiamen to Oulu, and who acts
| Risk | Where | Mitigation | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cargo shift in winter monsoon seas | Taiwan Strait, Oct–Apr | CINS blocking and bracing checked on photos | Packing site, checked by Anxin |
| Feeder operator does not accept the UN numbers | North Sea hub | DG acceptance for the feeder leg confirmed | Anxin with the carrier |
| Storage system delivered without Annex V test file | Buyer in Finland | Test documentation confirmed before booking | Manufacturer |
Questions
Questions about shipping from Xiamen to Oulu
24 hours before the container is loaded in China, not before it reaches Oulu. Without it carriers do not load the box, and a filing without an EORI number is rejected.
Yes, but in the restriction period only ships of the required ice class and deadweight receive icebreaker assistance. Finland's agency publishes the restrictions on baltice.org, with exemption requests due at least three working days before arrival.
For products that pass automatic pre-review, Xiamen Customs issues it through the single window; the case reported in August 2026 took about 10 minutes, against about half a day for the old on-site inspection. Products that do not pass pre-review still need inspection.
References
Regulations and port sources cited
- Inland transport of dangerous goods (summary of Directive 2008/68/EC) (EUR-Lex)
- Navigation through Danish waters (version 16.0, 2025) (Danish Maritime Authority)
- Finland's winter navigation 2025–2026 (Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency)
- Xiamen Customs smart supervision of lithium battery dangerous-goods packaging (Fujian Provincial Department of Industry and IT (from Fujian Daily))
- Xiamen port energy-storage battery transport safety guide 2.0 (Fujian Provincial Department of Commerce)
- Xiamen MSA measures for energy-storage battery exports (Fujian Provincial Department of Commerce)
- 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 Xiamen
- 5ImportClearance at Oulu
Prefer chat? Chat on WhatsApp (+86 151 4514 5178)
After you send it
We check carrier acceptance for Xiamen → Oulu before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
All destinations from Xiamen · Finland ports
