Overview
- River gauges on the Rhine and Danube have fallen to levels that already limit barge traffic, with Cologne's Rhine reported at 24 cm versus about 40 cm needed for standard freight barges.
- German inland navigation authorities warn the Rhine could be cut in two where the Kaub/Cologne passage narrows, and local readings there may fall even lower this week.
- An expert from Isemar says millions of tonnes of cargo are affected and that regions tied to Rhine and Danube transport—including Alsace, Switzerland, Hungary, Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria—face direct economic strain.
- Low water forces barges to carry smaller loads and make more trips, which raises logistics costs and is already prompting measures such as relaxed truck driving bans to move freight onto roads.
- The episode forms part of a wider summer drought that left many French waterways with little or no flow and that experts link to persistent dry weather and heat, raising the risk of longer supply chain disruption.