Asia – Mediterranean via Suez
Mediterranean services are the ones most likely to use Suez again (57% in September 2026), which puts the cargo back through Bab el-Mandeb, rated a SUBSTANTIAL threat.
Europe · sea freight from Xiamen
Xiamen to Valencia
South China Sea · Malacca Strait · Indian Ocean · Bab-el-Mandeb · Suez Canal · Aegean Sea · Ionian Sea · Sicily Channel
Lithium batteries for Valencia go out of Xiamen's Haicang and Songyu terminals on the Taiwan Strait. On the way they face a Bab el-Mandeb and Suez passage into the Mediterranean, and they arrive at a port that admits dangerous goods only on an electronic request through ValenciaportPCS.
Spain wants the producer on the RII-PYA register, with its number on the invoice. 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
Route profile
Mediterranean services are the ones most likely to use Suez again (57% in September 2026), which puts the cargo back through Bab el-Mandeb, rated a SUBSTANTIAL threat.
RII-PYA registration with its number on every invoice, quarterly market data including batteries inside equipment, and the EU-wide CE and label duties.


Where this route gets difficult
They run from the Xiamen terminal through the voyage to Valencia and the Spain import file.
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.
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.
Valencia admits dangerous goods on an electronic request through ValenciaportPCS; paper has not been accepted since 2013. The platform sends the same documentation to the Port Authority, the Harbourmaster and Customs at once, so a discrepancy is visible to all three.
What Anxin does: We make sure the DG details the agent will enter in ValenciaportPCS come from the shipper's final declaration, checked against the booking before loading in Xiamen.
The importer in Spain carries the check: CE marking on the battery and an EU declaration of conformity, translated into the language Spain 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 Spain importer. We check that the documents exist and match the goods; we do not assess conformity.
Road delivery from Valencia 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 Spain 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 Xiamen.
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 Spain are already asking suppliers for the supply-chain data they will need.
What Anxin does: We pass the Spain 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.

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 Xiamen export filings, the carrier booking and the Spain 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
| 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 |
| Heavy weather off South Africa on a Cape sailing | Cape of Good Hope | CINS stuffing checks | Packing site, checked by Anxin |
| Admission request inconsistent with the cargo | Port of Valencia | DG data checked against the booking | Agent / carrier |
| Declaration of conformity missing or not in the required language | Importer in Spain | Declaration and CE photo collected before loading | Manufacturer / importer |
Questions
24 hours before the container is loaded in China, not before it reaches Valencia. Without it carriers do not load the box, and a filing without an EORI number is rejected.
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.
Yes. Xiamen MSA reported 104 ESS containers of 36 tonnes each loaded for Houston in June 2026. Xiamen's ESS guide 2.0 requires a pre-voyage meeting and use of a class 9 qualified terminal.
References
Next step
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We check carrier acceptance for Xiamen → Valencia before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
All destinations from Xiamen · Spain ports

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