German Container Operator to Halt Operations on Parts of Rhine

Container company Contargo GmbH & Co. KG said it will largely discontinue its barge business on the middle and upper Rhine because low water levels mean it can no longer operate safely. 

The company will continue to use the lower parts of the Rhine and then move goods over land to other destinations, it said in a statement. Trucking capacities are limited, it said. A key marker on the Rhine, which companies use to calculate draft, fell Friday below a closely watched 40-centimeter level.

Read more: Rhine River Falls Below Critical Level at German Waypoint

“Our barges will not be able to sail without danger” at that point, the company said.