HAMBURG (Reuters) – Freight shipping costs on the Rhine river in Germany surged this week as water levels fell further, compelling vessels to sail less than half full, commodity traders said on Thursday.
Freight deliveries were still taking place, with loads divided among more vessels, which increases costs for cargo owners. But rain is at last forecast for next week, which could raise river levels, they said.
Prices for a tanker freighter sailing from Rotterdam to Karlsruhe rose to about 80 euros ($88.58) a tonne of cargo from 46 euros last week and 34 euros in late March, traders said.
Extreme lack of rain in March and April mean low water is hampering shipping on all the river south of Duisburg and Cologne, including the chokepoint of Kaub, traders said.
Shallow water means vessel operators impose surcharges on freight rates to compensate for vessels not sailing fully loaded, increasing costs for cargo owners. Consignments must be shipped by several vessels instead of one, also raising costs.
“You now need several vessels instead of one to deliver consignments which is more expensive and vessel owners charge more to compensate for the smaller loads,” one grain trader said. “At last, substantial rain is forecast next week, but we will have to see just how much actually falls.”
Repeated rain is forecast in south German river catchment areas from Saturday until Thursday.
Germany’s transport ministry said this week the shallow Rhine was not regarded as an extreme low water event and it hoped mid-April rain would bring improvements.
The Rhine is an important shipping route for commodities including grains, minerals, ores, coal and oil products like heating oil. German companies faced supply bottlenecks and production problems in summer 2022 after a drought and heat wave led to unusually low water levels on the Rhine.
(Reporting by Michael Hogan in Hamburg, additional reporting by Rachel More in Berlin, Editing by Bernadette Baum)
