Europe faces weekend logistics storm

09 November 2007 15:44  [Source: ICIS news]

By Mark Watts

 

LONDON (ICIS news)--The European chemical industry faced a weekend of logistical woes on Friday as ports were threatened by flooding and strikes and water levels on the river Rhine remained critically low.

 

The Port of Rotterdam was set to reopen at 21:00 local time after rising tides and a storm surge in the North Sea forced authorities to close off the Rhine river barring vessel access to the port.

 

Closure of the floodgates and difficulties at other North Sea ports were causing confusion for chemical shippers. Four chemical tankers were awaiting pilotage to enter Antwerp, Belgium, following the storm surge. These were the Baltic Claire, the Karen D, the Stena Province and the Mary Wonsild.

 

There were also conflicting reports regarding the German ports of Hamburg and Bremerhaven.

 

It was thought Hamburg remained open, while Bremerhaven was expected to shut before the evening high tide, according to terminal operator Eurogate.

 

Shipping at the inland Rhine port of Marl could also be affected, with one consumer fearing it would be closed on Sunday.

 

Meanwhile, a rail strike in Germany was affecting 700 freight trains across the country, bringing freight transport to a nearby standstill in eastern Germany.

 

One German methanol producer feared there may be a bigger strike next week including both freight and passenger trains, as strikers remained at loggerheads with the Deutsche Bahn railway.

 

The producer said it had employed an independent railway company where possible in order to facilitate deliveries.

 

Low water levels on the river Rhine continued to hamper the flow of chemicals in barges. Water was a mere 90cm deep at Kaub as levels were stabilising but still low.

 

Barges were only able to carry 40% of their normal loads, or between 400-900 tonnes depending on location, causing bottlenecks along the river.

 

“The rain is not enough to fill the Rhine and it will be an unchanged situation for the next weeks,” one player affected by the stricken river said on Friday.

 

Caroline Howard, Ed Cox and Nick Savvides contributed to this article

 

By: Mark Watts
+44 20 8652 3214

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