Fewer goods were transported on Germany’s rivers and canals last year than at any time since reunification in 1990. Inland waterway vessels transported 182 million tons of goods, 6.4 percent less than a year earlier, according to the Federal Statistical Office.
The Wiesbaden statisticians explained the low with the fact that there were declines in important transport goods – partly because of the Ukraine war. In addition, in August 2022, drought and low water caused problems for inland shipping.
According to the information provided, inland waterway vessels transported mainly liquid mineral oil products such as heating oil (27.0 million tons), coal (25.6 million tons), stone and earth (22.7 million tons) and iron ore (19.7 million tons) in Germany last year ).
While there were declines in most of the goods groups, coal transports increased by 12.1 percent compared to 2021. The reason: because of the energy crisis and the lack of gas supplies from Russia, Germany used more coal to generate electricity.
