SMM has learned that the navigable water depth at the Kaub gauge on Germany's Rhine River dropped to 12 centimetres on August 12, falling below the previous historic low of 25 centimetres recorded in 2018. Most vessels are now unable to transit this bottleneck section, and ships still operating on the northern stretch are typically running at approximately 20% of their cargo capacity.
Under normal conditions, roughly 24,000 tonnes of coal and iron ore are transported daily from Rotterdam to Duisburg via the inland waterway. Current daily inland waterway volumes have fallen to approximately 14,500 tonnes, representing a shortfall of around 9,500 tonnes per day against the normal level. Local enterprises are planning to arrange three return rail movements per week through to end-September, with each run transporting approximately 2,000 tonnes of coal to the HKM steelworks in Duisburg, in order to partially offset the inland waterway capacity shortfall.
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