At times when water levels in the Rhine are low, industrial production tends to decline. This is a problem for German industry, which is also facing increased pressure regarding supply chain operations and resource shortages.

Low water levels in the Rhine threaten further problems for German industry, which is being seriously affected by high energy costs, supply chain disruptions and the price surge caused by inflation.

Water levels in Germany's largest river have recently continued to fall due to rapidly rising temperatures and a lack of rainfall in the region.

As water levels drop, the minister promotes a river deepening plan

As fully laden vessels were unable to use the country's main waterway, German Transport Minister Volker Wissing called for the river to be deepened so that more cargo could be transported along it. In the long term, this is necessary to "shift traffic from roads to rail and waterways". The minister explained that the planned deepening of the Rhine is a project that, in a recently conducted German government study on long-term travel strategy, has "the best cost-benefit ratio".

"We must eliminate bottlenecks on the Rhine. We need the waterway," said V. Wissing, explaining that the implementation of the "extensive project" could last until the early 2030s. The investment would be around 180 million euros (approximately 183 million US dollars), of which about 40% would be earmarked for additional ecological measures. (...)
Photograph by Roberto Pfeil, dpa, picture alliance used for the original article