Germany: Minister demands federal funds for Rhine shipping channel expansion

North Rhine-Westphalia's Transport Minister Oliver Krischer is demanding that the federal government release funds for the continued expansion of the Rhine river's shipping channel. The current low water levels highlight the urgent need for this infrastructure work.

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We expect the federal government to provide the funds at short notice so that construction can proceed and further planning can occur.

Krischer explained that the Waterways and Shipping Administration cannot proceed with the second, construction-ready phase between Krefeld and Düsseldorf because the federal government eliminated the necessary funds for 2025. "We expect the federal government to provide the funds at short notice so that construction can proceed and further planning can occur," Krischer told the German Press Agency. He emphasized that the federal government must fulfill its responsibility for the Rhine, a federal waterway.

North Rhine-Westphalia plans to press this issue at a "Rhine States Conference" scheduled for September 4, involving Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse, and Baden-Württemberg. Measures on the first section between Duisburg and Krefeld have already been completed. The third section, between Düsseldorf and Cologne, is still in the planning stages.

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The federal government must fulfill its responsibility for the Rhine, a federal waterway.

North Rhine-Westphalia's Minister of Economic Affairs, Mona Neubaur, stressed the river's historical importance. "The Rhine has always been the lifeline of our industry," she said. "Now it must also become a symbol of how we adapt our industrial location to climate change: pragmatically, technologically open, and in harmony with nature."

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The Rhine has always been the lifeline of our industry. Now it must also become a symbol of how we adapt our industrial location to climate change: pragmatically, technologically open, and in harmony with nature.