HAMBURG, Aug 28 (Reuters) – Water levels on the river Rhine in Germany remained stable this week, holding above record lows after recent rain and allowing vessels to carry larger cargoes, the country’s inland navigation agency said on Friday.
Freight rates on the river have fallen, and heavy rain forecast for Friday could bring further relief. However, water levels remain too low for vessels to sail fully loaded, commodity traders said.
German companies have faced disruption after Rhine water levels fell to record lows earlier this month, driving up transport costs, creating logistics bottlenecks and curbing production.
Inland navigation agency WSV said the navigable water level at Kaub, a key chokepoint near Koblenz, stood at around 60 cm on Friday. That compares with less than 10 cm in mid-August, below the previous record low of 25 cm set in 2018. The river itself is about 1 meter deeper than the navigable gauge reading.
Even so, cargoes must still be split among several partially loaded vessels, increasing costs for industry. Some freight has also shifted to road and rail transport.
Many ships had stopped sailing through Kaub in mid-August because of the low water. Some services have resumed, although vessels are carrying only 700 to 800 metric tons, depending on ship type, traders said.
The cost of river tanker freight from Rotterdam to Karlsruhe fell to about €100 to €110 ($116 to $128) a metric ton on Friday from more than €145 a ton in mid-August, a trader said.
Germany and several other European countries have endured successive heatwaves and limited rainfall this summer, pushing down water levels on waterways such as the Rhine, a vital shipping route for grain, minerals, coal and refined oil products.
($1 = 0.8590 euros)
(Reporting by Michael Hogan in Hamburg. Editing by Mark Potter)
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