Guangzhou (Nansha)
Pearl River Delta battery cargo through Nansha, where a September 2026 agreement lets Dongguan-inspected containers load without a second MSA check, and where typhoon season runs June to October.
Europe · sea freight from Guangzhou
Shipping from Guangzhou to Burgas
Guangzhou to Burgas
South China Sea · Malacca Strait · Indian Ocean · Bab-el-Mandeb · Suez Canal · Sea of Marmara · Bosporus · Black Sea
- GuangzhouChina origin
- South China Sea
- Malacca Strait
- Indian Ocean
- Bab-el-Mandeb
- Suez Canal
- Sea of Marmara
- Bosporus
- Black Sea
- BurgasBulgaria
Lithium batteries for Burgas go from the Pearl River Delta via Nansha. On the way they face a corridor through the Turkish Straits, and they arrive at the port of Burgas.
The Bulgaria side follows the EU battery and customs pre-filing rules. Below are 6 route-specific points to plan for, what we do about each, and the documents to have ready before booking.
What we need to start
- Nansha export
- Dongguan–Nansha one-box
- National producer registration
- EU declaration of conformity
- Consignee EORI
Route profile
The Guangzhou → Burgas route in brief
Asia – Black Sea via Suez and the Turkish Straits
Suez, the Aegean and the Turkish Straits, with a 24-hour DG sailing plan before the Bosporus and, since September 2026, almost the whole Black Sea on the war-risk list.
Where this route gets difficult
6 pain points from Guangzhou to Burgas
They run from the Guangzhou terminal through the voyage to Burgas and the Bulgaria import file.
- Origin port
Typhoon weeks at the Pearl River mouth
The Hong Kong Observatory puts the region's tropical cyclone season from June to October, busiest July to September. Nansha sits at the mouth of the Pearl River; a closed gate or a changed vessel means the DG filings and the packing certificate have to follow the box to a new sailing.
What Anxin does: From June to October we leave slack between stuffing and the DG cut-off at Nansha and refile quickly if the vessel changes.
- Origin port
Customs and MSA now compare packaging certificates
In September 2026 Dongguan Customs and Dongguan MSA started sharing dangerous-goods packaging certificate data, described as a first in China, together with joint action against concealed and false declarations; Huangpu Customs also runs a joint 'lithium batteries going overseas' service against misdeclaration. A packaging certificate that does not match the MSA filing is now visible to both agencies.
What Anxin does: We check that the UN number, packaging code and quantities on the packaging certificate are exactly those on the MSA cargo report before either is submitted.
- Sea corridor
Almost the whole Black Sea is now a war-risk listed area
On 16 September 2026 the Joint War Committee widened its Black Sea listed area to almost the entire sea, leaving out only Turkish, Georgian, Bulgarian and Romanian territorial waters. Ships entering must notify their war-risk underwriters, who may charge additional premiums per voyage, and carriers can pass that on.
What Anxin does: We ask the carrier for any war-risk surcharge to Burgas in writing before booking and recheck it if the sailing moves.
- Import country
CE marking and a declaration of conformity in the right language
Since 18 August 2024 a battery sold in the EU needs the CE marking and an EU declaration of conformity from its manufacturer. The declaration has to be available in the language Bulgaria requires, and the importer is the one who must check both before the goods are released for sale.
What Anxin does: We ask the manufacturer in China for the declaration of conformity and a photo of the CE marking on the battery or its packaging before loading, and pass them to the Bulgaria importer. We check that the documents exist and match the goods; we do not assess conformity.
- Import country
The ICS2 entry summary is due before loading in Guangzhou
For Burgas, 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 Guangzhou. 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 Guangzhou cut-off.
- Import country
Due diligence on battery raw materials from August 2027
Regulation (EU) 2025/1561 pushed the Battery Regulation's due diligence duties for cobalt, lithium, nickel and natural graphite back to 18 August 2027 and gave the Commission until 26 July 2026 for its guidelines. Buyers in Bulgaria are already collecting the supply-chain information they will need.
What Anxin does: We pass the Bulgaria buyer's due diligence questions to the manufacturer and keep their answers with the shipment file; the policy itself remains the producer's responsibility.
Documents & compliance
Documents to line up for Guangzhou → Burgas
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.
Before loading in Guangzhou
- Packaging certificate and MSA cargo report cross-checked line by line (UN number, packaging code, quantity)
- Importer name, trade name and postal address printed on battery or packaging
- 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
For the carrier and the voyage
- Final DG manifest data ready before the vessel reaches the Turkish Straits
- Condition statement: new, used, damaged/defective (SP376) or for recycling (SP377)
- War-risk surcharge for the Black Sea port stated in writing
For the importer in Bulgaria
- Instructions and safety information in the language Bulgaria requires
- Haulier in Bulgaria briefed with UN number, class 9 and tunnel code (E) for the road leg
Before you book
Match the details first
We line up UN numbers, model names and package counts across the Guangzhou filings, the booking with the carrier and the documents for Bulgaria before the booking is confirmed, so that a mismatch is fixed at origin rather than discovered at Burgas.
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 Guangzhou → Burgas
| Risk | Where | Mitigation | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typhoon closure after filings are made | Nansha, Jun–Oct | Slack in stuffing date; prompt refiling | Anxin with the declarant |
| Mismatch between packaging certificate and MSA filing flagged by shared data | Dongguan / Nansha | Line-by-line check before submission | Anxin with the declarant |
| Additional war-risk premium added after booking | Black Sea listed area | Surcharge confirmed in writing | Carrier, checked by Anxin |
| Declaration of conformity missing or not in the required language | Importer in Bulgaria | Declaration and CE photo collected before loading | Manufacturer / importer |
| ENS not filed and the box is refused at loading | Loading port, Guangzhou | EORI and house-bill data passed to the filer at booking | Filer (carrier / forwarder) |
Questions
Common questions on the Guangzhou → Burgas route
24 hours before the container is loaded in China, not before it reaches Burgas. Without it carriers do not load the box, and a filing without an EORI number is rejected.
Possibly. Since 16 September 2026 almost the whole Black Sea, outside Turkish, Georgian, Bulgarian and Romanian territorial waters, is a Joint War Committee listed area, and underwriters may charge additional premiums. We get the carrier's surcharge in writing.
Nansha MSA has recommended around 25% for ESS batteries and measures against accidental activation. Treat it as the local authority's recommendation; the carrier's own acceptance conditions also apply.
References
Where these points come from
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 on batteries and waste batteries (ELI) (EUR-Lex / Publications Office of the EU)
- Regulation (EU) 2025/1561 amending Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 as regards due diligence obligations (EUR-Lex / Publications Office of the EU)
- 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)
- Turkish Straits Maritime Traffic Regulation (English translation) (Republic of Türkiye (translation published by VDA))
- Nansha MSA meeting on the safe carriage of energy-storage batteries (Guangzhou Nansha District Government)
- Forecasting yearly number of tropical cyclones affecting Hong Kong (tropical cyclone season June–October, most active July–September) (Hong Kong Observatory)
- 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 Guangzhou
- 5ImportClearance at Burgas
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After you send it
We check carrier acceptance for Guangzhou → Burgas before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
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