Recent rainfall in Germany has led to higher water levels in the Rhine river, allowing vessels to carry more cargo. Despite this improvement, most vessels are still only sailing at around half capacity. The increase in water levels is a result of heavy rain in the region, with more forecasted in the coming days. However, it is expected that water levels will still not be at a point where normal sailings can resume.
The low water levels, caused by extreme dry weather in March and April, have been affecting shipping on the river south of Duisburg and Cologne, including the bottleneck of Kaub. While freight deliveries are still ongoing, the loads are being divided among more vessels, leading to increased costs for cargo owners. Vessel operators are imposing surcharges on freight rates due to ships not being able to sail fully loaded.
As a result of the shallow water levels, consignments must be split among several vessels, further raising costs for cargo owners. Prices for tanker freighters sailing from Rotterdam to Karlsruhe have been steadily increasing, reaching 90 euros a ton on Thursday. The Rhine is a crucial shipping route for commodities such as grains, minerals, coal, and oil products. German companies faced supply bottlenecks and production issues in the summer of 2022 due to low water levels caused by a drought and heat wave.
