HAMBURG (Reuters) – Water levels on the river Rhine in Germany are rising after heavy rain in southern regions but are still too shallow in northern and central areas for cargo vessels to sail fully loaded, commodity traders said on Wednesday.
Water levels in southern sections of the river are increasing after the rain and some improvement in recent shallowness is expected as water flows north, they added.
Dry weather in June meant the river became too shallow for vessels to sail fully loaded and vessel operators imposed surcharges on freight rates to compensate for vessels sailing partly empty, increasing costs for cargo owners.
The Rhine is still too shallow for normal sailings at the chokepoint of Kaub and northern areas around Cologne and Duisburg. Some vessels, depending on the type, can only sail less than half full in northern regions, the traders said.
The Rhine is an important shipping route for commodities such as grains, minerals, coal and oil products, including heating oil. German companies faced supply bottlenecks and production problems in the summer of 2022 after a drought and heat wave led to unusually low water levels on the Rhine.
(Reporting by Michael Hogan; Editing by Eileen Soreng)
