LOW RHINE WATER LEVELS THREATEN GERMAN INDUSTRY

FRANKFURT, AUGUST 12 /SRNA-Reuters/ - German companies have reported increasingly severe consequences of the Rhine’s record-low water levels, with chemical manufacturers, utilities, steelmakers and farmers warning of higher costs, transport bottlenecks and reduced production.

Germany has not experienced major production disruptions during previous Rhine crises, but businesses now say that some freight shipments can no longer be booked following weeks of drought.

At the same time, companies are increasingly reporting operational problems.

Chemical manufacturer Covestro said that the shortage of transport capacity cannot be fully offset despite shifting some shipments to trucks and trains.

The Rhine is one of Europe’s main arteries for transporting grain, fuel, minerals and industrial goods.

"Alarm bells are ringing loudly — extremely low water levels are increasingly pushing logistics and supply chains to their limits," Wolfgang Große Entrup, chief executive of the German Chemical Industry Association VCI, told Reuters.

State-owned energy company Uniper pointed to a decline in electricity generation at hydropower plants, while private power producers are facing similar problems.