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.
Europe · sea freight from Shenzhen
Shenzhen to Norrkoping
South China Sea · Malacca Strait · Indian Ocean · Bab-el-Mandeb · Suez Canal · Strait of Gibraltar · English Channel · Danish Straits
This route runs from Dongguan and Shenzhen factories via Yantian, where the one-box route had moved 409 battery containers by September 2026, then follows a long Europe voyage extended through the Danish straits into the Baltic; at the far end is the port of Norrkoping.
The Swedish side adds the Naturvårdsverket register to the EU battery rules. 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
Route profile
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.
Naturvårdsverket registration under Ordinance 2025:813 since 1 January 2026, plus EU duties from CE marking to ADR on the road leg.


Where this route gets difficult
Listed from loading in Shenzhen to import into Sweden, each with what we do about it.
Much Shenzhen battery export is stuffed inland and trucked to the terminal. In May 2026 Yantian MSA and Dongguan MSA ran a cross-regional 'one-box' pilot: four battery containers were inspected jointly at the Dongguan factory and loaded at Yantian without being opened again. It shows that the inspection record made at the factory is what matters at the terminal.
What Anxin does: We ask at booking whether your factory and the terminal's MSA office can use the one-box arrangement, and we have stuffing photos, the packing certificate and the DG declaration match exactly, so the container is not held for re-inspection.
Every winter Finland's Transport Infrastructure Agency sets traffic restrictions for its ports: only ships of a stated ice class and deadweight get icebreaker assistance. Exemption requests must be in at least three working days before arrival, and the restrictions for the Baltic are published on baltice.org. A feeder without the right ice class may not be allowed to call at Norrkoping in the restriction period.
What Anxin does: For winter shipments we check the restrictions in force on baltice.org for Norrkoping and ask the carrier to confirm that the final feeder has the required ice class before we book.
The importer in Sweden carries the check: CE marking on the battery and an EU declaration of conformity, translated into the language Sweden asks for, have both been required since 18 August 2024 for batteries entering the EU market.
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 Sweden importer. We check that the documents exist and match the goods; we do not assess conformity.
Road delivery from Norrkoping is an ADR movement, because the EU applies ADR to domestic journeys through Directive 2008/68/EC. For UN 3480 that means class 9, transport category 2 and tunnel code (E), which restricts the route through category E tunnels; batteries found damaged at unloading move to special provision 376 packing (P908 or P911).
What Anxin does: We give the Sweden haulier the same UN number, class and package details that appear on the sea dangerous goods declaration, so the ADR transport document matches the container paperwork from Shenzhen.
The Battery Regulation's due diligence obligations on cobalt, lithium, nickel and natural graphite were postponed by Regulation (EU) 2025/1561 and now apply from 18 August 2027, with Commission guidelines due by 26 July 2026. Buyers in Sweden are already asking suppliers for the supply-chain data they will need.
What Anxin does: We pass the Sweden 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
Anxin reviews documents supplied by the shipper, manufacturer and importer; it does not issue test reports, safety data sheets or import certificates.

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 Shenzhen filings, the carrier booking and the Sweden 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
| Risk | Where | Mitigation | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Container reopened at the terminal because records do not match | Factory → Yantian | Photos, packing certificate and DG declaration cross-checked before trucking | Anxin |
| Feeder lacks the ice class required under winter restrictions | Northern Baltic, winter | Ice class confirmed at booking | Carrier, checked by Anxin |
| Declaration of conformity missing or not in the required language | Importer in Sweden | Declaration and CE photo collected before loading | Manufacturer / importer |
| Road route planned through a category E tunnel | Road leg from Norrkoping | Tunnel code (E) passed to the haulier with the transport data | Haulier / forwarder |
Questions
24 hours before the container is loaded in China, not before it reaches Norrkoping. 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.
Yes, provided a certified packing inspector supervises the stuffing and signs the container packing certificate. Since May 2026 Yantian and Dongguan MSA have also piloted joint factory inspection so the container can be loaded at Yantian without reopening; we check whether your shipment can use it.
References
Next step
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We check carrier acceptance for Shenzhen → Norrkoping before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
All destinations from Shenzhen · Sweden ports

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