Rhine Falls to Record Low as Cargo Shifts to Rail

The water level of the river Rhine in Germany has fallen to a new all-time low amid an ongoing heat wave. According to the country's inland waterways authority, the navigable water depth at the key bottleneck of Kaub, near Koblenz, reached just 10 centimeters, breaking the previous record of 25 centimeters set in 2018. Many vessels are no longer passing through this section at all for safety reasons.

The historic drought is causing serious problems for German chemical and steel manufacturers, energy companies, and agricultural commodity traders. Due to the shallow water, vessels on the northern sections of the river can be loaded to only 20% of their capacity, or even less.

Spreading cargo across multiple partially loaded ships significantly increases transportation costs, causes delays, and creates bottlenecks in the supply chain.

Logistics companies are therefore shifting freight transport to land routes on a massive scale. They are also strengthening rail connections, deploying additional trucks, and adapting river terminals to serve as combined logistics hubs.

Ship captains must decide daily whether navigation on specific sections of the Rhine remains safe and practically feasible, as the river is a key European artery for the transport of grain, ore, coal and oil.

(Reuters, Max)