Low water levels in the Rhine negatively affect the German steel industry: associations
Record low water levels in the Rhine could trigger a chain reaction in German industry, including the steel sector, industry associations said in a statement.
The German Association for Steel Processing and Recycling (BSV), the German Association for Recycling of Secondary Raw Materials and Waste (bvse) and the German Association of Metal Dealers and Recyclables Processors (VDM) have issued a joint appeal for additional support.
"The water level in the Rhine in the Kauba area has fallen below the 2018 minimum, and inland navigation cargo vessels can only carry a third of their usual volume in critical sections of the river," they warn.
"The closure of one of the main transport arteries threatens to have a negative impact on the entire economy of the country. A threefold reduction in the carrying capacity of ships requires a threefold increase in the number of voyages. This dramatically increases the cost of transporting a ton of cargo and creates an acute shortage of ships."
According to the BSV, in 2024, about 120.7 million tons of cargo were transported in the industry, of which 49.3% were transported by rail, 31.6% by inland waterway and only 19.2% by road.
"In general, more than 81% of traffic volumes are accounted for by water and rail transport. About 38 million tons of metallurgical cargoes are transported annually along the river. Hypothetically, if even half of this volume were redirected to highways, more than 760,000 additional trucks per year (more than 63,000 per month) would be needed. This proves that road transport is not able to quickly replace river barges," the association adds.
Rail transport is also on the verge of exhausting its capacity, as steel companies are forced to share their existing wagons with enterprises in the chemical, energy, construction and agricultural industries, the association notes.
"About four million people are employed in the largest steel-consuming industries, such as automotive, mechanical engineering and construction," the report says. "Delays in the supply of raw materials or finished metal threaten production disruptions and investment freezes."
The situation is complicated by the increase in steel production in the first half of 2026, when Germany produced 18.6 million tons of steel, which is 8.9% more than in the same period last year," Kallanish notes. Factories
andThey need uninterrupted supplies of scrap and export of products. According to the associations, disruptions in logistics lead to overcrowding of warehouses at processing plants and shortages of raw materials at enterprises.
They urge the German authorities to immediately coordinate the work of all modes of transport and speed up the approval of alternative routes.