Barges on Middle Rhine loading as low as 30% of capacity due to low water levels

MADRID (ICIS)–Low water levels on the River Rhine in Germany continue worsening and some barges are only able to load at 30% of their capacity on some parts of the key northwest Europe waterway, authorities said to ICIS on Wednesday.

Barges in the Middle Rhine, which includes key petrochemicals hub in the Mannheim region, including BASF’s Ludwigshafen flagship site (see bottom map), are only allowed to load at 30-55% of their capacity, depending on size.

In the Lower Rhine, barges are only permitted to load at 45-75% of their capacity, according to the Rhine Waterways and Shipping Authority (WSA Rhine).

For both counts, the situation has worsened from last week.

Petrochemicals players are likely to see their logistics costs increase on the back of limits to capacity loading on the Rhine.

On top of that, they may also face problems with cooling their plants if the current heatwave prolongs and may be forced to reduce operating rates, trade groups said to ICIS this week.

“The load factor at a given fairway depth depends on the maximum draught of the individual barge, which ranges from 2,5m to 4m, or even 4,5m. Draught at dead load also is involved,” said Florian Krekel, a spokesperson at the WSA.

“Since last week, water levels along the Rhine have fallen a further 20cm. For common Rhine barges (with a size of 110m x 11,45m) this reduces the possible load by more than 200 metric tonnes. This shows that the situation has worsened since last week.”

Elwis, a consultancy that specialises in German waterways, forecasts on Wednesday water levels on the Rhine could rise slightly at the end of this week at the Kaub gauge point, the shallowest point of the river (see map), as some rain is expected in northwest Europe.

Source: Elwis

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Front page picture: A woman stands in the sun at a gravel beach island on the Rhine near Speyer, Germany, on Tuesday 
Source: Ronald Wittek/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Additional reporting by Nazif Nazmul and Miguel Rodriguez-Fernandez