European Heatwave Drives Rhine River to Critical Levels, Pushes Diesel Barge Rates to Record
Extreme heat across Europe has pushed the Rhine River to critically low water levels, restricting cargo capacity and sending certain diesel barge rates to a record. Vessels transporting fuels and coal must navigate a narrow bottleneck at Kaub, south of Cologne, which is increasingly difficult to traverse, according to a Friday note from shipbroker Riverlake.
The dry conditions have limited shipping volumes to and from the North Sea hub of Rotterdam while also disrupting commercial traffic on the Danube in central and southeastern Europe. Operators are shipping reduced volumes of coal and petroleum products from the Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Antwerp ports to downstream markets as water levels continue to drop.
From the sources (2 posts)
@staunovoExtreme heat in Europe has left the Rhine River at critically low levels, driving up the cost of commercial deliveries along the key waterway. Dry weather has limited the volumes that can be carried to and from Rotterdam, sending certain d
@burggrabenhThe Rhine doesn’t like the heatwave. Let’s see how much longer they can ship reduced coal & petroleum products from ARA ports south. Water levels everywhere are heading to record lows