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 Sète
Dalian to Sète
Yellow Sea · Taiwan Strait · Malacca Strait · Indian Ocean · Bab-el-Mandeb · Suez Canal · Sicily Channel · Ligurian Sea
- DalianChina origin
- Yellow Sea
- Taiwan Strait
- Malacca Strait
- Indian Ocean
- Bab-el-Mandeb
- Suez Canal
- Sicily Channel
- Ligurian Sea
- SèteFrance
This route runs out of Dalian, the north-east's gateway on the Yellow Sea, then follows a Bab el-Mandeb and Suez passage into the Mediterranean; at the far end is the port of Sète.
France asks for a batteries IDU and eco-organisme membership before the first sale. This page sets out 5 points specific to this route, how Anxin handles each one and which documents to prepare.
What we need to start
- Dalian Dayaowan export
- Winter ice & spring fog
- EU declaration of conformity
- IDU (batteries stream)
- French-language safety information
Route profile
What sets Dalian → Sète apart
France
A SYDEREP IDU and eco-organisme membership for every battery category, with EU duties from CE marking to the importer's address on the battery.
Where this route gets difficult
Where Dalian → Sète shipments get held up: 5 points
Loading port first, then the sea leg, then Sète and the France market.
- Origin port
Fewer battery sailings from Dalian under JT/T 1543
Dalian's battery flow is modest: Dalian MSA recorded 885 TEU of lithium battery exports in the first four months of 2025, and Liaoning's first export under JT/T 1543 left Dayaowan on 4 May 2025. Carriers should refuse batteries that fail JT/T 1543, and a thin flow leaves fewer alternative sailings when a booking is turned down.
What Anxin does: We check JT/T 1543 conformity evidence with the manufacturer before booking and confirm the carrier's acceptance of the UN numbers in writing.
- Sea corridor
If the service goes round Africa instead
The 43% of Mediterranean services not using the Red Sea sail round the Cape of Good Hope, then back through Gibraltar. SAMSA estimates about 200 of the 576 containers lost at sea in 2024 went overboard near the Cape, 35% of the year's total.
What Anxin does: On Cape sailings we apply the CINS blocking and bracing checks strictly on stuffing photos before sealing.
- Import country
The IDU: France's proof that the producer is registered
Every producer in a French REP stream has needed a unique identifier since 2022, and it is the proof of registration in ADEME's SYDEREP register. When the producer joins an eco-organisme, the eco-organisme does the registration; the IDU then has to appear in the terms of sale or on the website and be given to buyers who ask.
What Anxin does: We ask the French importer for the batteries-stream IDU of whoever acts as producer before we book, so the buyer's own IDU check does not stop the goods after they reach Sète.
- Import country
The ICS2 entry summary is due before loading in Dalian
For Sète, EU security pre-filing happens at the other end of the voyage: the ICS2 entry summary must reach the system 24 hours before the container is loaded in Dalian. No filing means no loading, and a missing EORI number is enough to reject it.
What Anxin does: We collect the consignee's EORI number, an HS-level goods description and the house-bill parties at booking, and make sure the party filing the ENS has them before the Dalian cut-off.
- Import country
The importer's name and address on the battery
A battery entering France has to identify its importer: name, registered trade name or trade mark, postal address and a contact point belong on the battery itself, or on the packaging or accompanying document when the battery is too small. That text is fixed at the factory, not at Sète.
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.
Documents & compliance
What to have ready: Dalian to Sète
Anxin reviews documents supplied by the shipper, manufacturer and importer; it does not issue test reports, safety data sheets or import certificates.
In Dalian, before the box is loaded
- JT/T 1543 conformity evidence from the manufacturer
- 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
- Customs packaging use-appraisal result for the dangerous goods packaging (with the maker's performance appraisal)
For the carrier and the voyage
- Routing (Red Sea or Cape) and any war-risk surcharge stated on the booking
- Consignee EORI and HS-level description to the ENS filer before loading
- UN 38.3 test summary for every cell and battery type
For import into France
- Batteries-stream IDU of the producer of record in France
- Haulier in France briefed with UN number, class 9 and tunnel code (E) for the road leg
- Eco-organisme (or approved individual system) for the battery category
Before you book
Match the details first
We line up UN numbers, model names and package counts across the Dalian filings, the booking with the carrier and the documents for France before the booking is confirmed, so that a mismatch is fixed at origin rather than discovered at Sète.
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 table for Dalian → Sète
| Risk | Where | Mitigation | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy weather off South Africa on a Cape sailing | Cape of Good Hope | CINS stuffing checks | Packing site, checked by Anxin |
| Buyer cannot verify an IDU and holds the order | Importer in France | IDU obtained before booking | Importer / producer |
| ENS not filed and the box is refused at loading | Loading port, Dalian | EORI and house-bill data passed to the filer at booking | Filer (carrier / forwarder) |
| Importer details missing from battery and packaging | Importer in France | Address block sent to the factory before packing | Manufacturer / importer |
Questions
Common questions on the Dalian → Sète route
Yes. Since 18 August 2025 all battery categories, industrial and EV included, must be covered by an approved eco-organisme or an approved individual system.
Often: in September 2026, 57% of Asia–Mediterranean services used the Red Sea routing. Bab el-Mandeb was rated a SUBSTANTIAL threat by the JMIC on 24 September 2026, so we confirm each service's routing before booking.
Dayaowan MSA reported in 2024 that omissions and misdeclarations of lithium battery cargo were frequent because the rules are complex, and it uses AI document comparison. Consistent data across the declaration, SDS and packing documents is the main defence.
References
Where these points come from
- Identifiant unique (IDU) des filières REP (ADEME, Filières REP)
- Filière REP Batteries (BAT) (ADEME, Filières REP)
- 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 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)
- JMIC Update 099 to Advisory Note (Joint Maritime Information Center (via UKMTO))
- 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 Dalian
- 5ImportClearance at Sète
Prefer chat? Chat on WhatsApp (+86 151 4514 5178)
After you send it
We check carrier acceptance for Dalian → Sète before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
All destinations from Dalian · France ports
