Cargo ships on the Upper Elbe will remain idle until September

Due to low water levels, no cargo ships are expected to operate on the Elbe from the Czech Republic to Magdeburg until September. Heiko Lorof, managing director of Sächsische Binnenhäfen Oberelbe (SBO), stated in response to an inquiry that economically viable cargo shipping on the Upper Elbe is currently not possible, which is why no ships are currently in operation. 

Ships are waiting in ports

While this situation is familiar from the summer months of previous years, “However, this year we experienced very low water levels on the Elbe very early on (starting in late April), so we were unable to get all shipments to their destinations on time,” explained Lorof. As a result, large-volume and heavy-haul shipments in particular are waiting in the ports for water levels to rise, since they cannot switch to rail or road transport.

Ships have currently been rerouted to other areas

According to Loroff, no cargo ships sail on the Elbe when water levels are below 1.0 meters; at the Dresden gauge, the level was 68 centimeters this morning. “Of course, we hope the situation will improve as quickly as possible, but realistically speaking, that certainly won’t happen before September,” said Loroff. The available fleet has been rerouted to navigable waterways. Only once the Upper Elbe is permanently navigable again will the ships be brought back. Until then, the SBO is using road and rail transport.

Restrictions have also recently affected the Weiße Flotte sightseeing boats in Dresden. In some cases, the steamboats were operating on only one route within the city; trips toward Meissen and Saxon Switzerland had to be canceled. They can operate when water levels reach at least 50 centimeters.