Accident at Mosel River lock complicates transportation of scrap

The Moselle River in West Germany, one of the key transportation routes for raw materials, will remain closed to shipping until March 2025 due to an accident. On December 8, 2024, a cargo ship carrying 1.5 thousand tons of ferrous scrap collided with a lock gate near Müden, causing serious damage. As a result, about 70 ships were stuck between Luxembourg and Koblenz, and transportation of raw materials by river became impossible, Reuters reports.

According to SteelOrbis, this situation has already had a negative impact on the logistics operations of large steel companies, including ArcelorMittal, which received up to 10% of its scrap supplies through the port of Mertera in Luxembourg. For other companies, such as the German steel mills Dillinger Hütte and Saarstahl, Mosel was critical for the transportation of raw materials. Large scrap recyclers like Theo Steil in Trier are also forced to look for alternative logistics solutions, including road and rail transport, which increases costs.

At the same time, local scrap suppliers report a €5-20/t decrease in purchase prices due to the weak market and reduced demand from steelmakers. Experts predict that if the transportation disruptions continue, it could lead to a shortage of raw materials and, consequently, higher scrap prices in the region.

As GMK Center reported earlier, the European scrap market showed a mixed trend in November. After the autumn decline driven by low demand and limited exports, the situation gradually stabilized but remained challenging due to weak demand for finished steel.

Scrap prices in Italy remained stable between November 1 and 25, at 330-360/tonne Ex-works for E8. The German scrap market saw a €5-10/t drop to €305-310/t for E3. The outlook for December remains uncertain. Pre-holiday production stoppages in most parts of the EU and a decline in activity could change the price dynamics again.