Low water levels causing ongoing delays along Ohio River

Houston (Platts)--18Aug2005

Petrochemical barge shipments along the Ohio and Mississippi river systems are
facing continued delays due to low water levels caused by drought conditions
in the US Midwest, market sources reported. The Ohio River has been
particularly affected, but problems have also been noted at the confluence of
the Ohio and Mississippi rivers at Cairo, Illinois, and further south. 
     On Thursday, the Ohio River at Cairo was measured at 9.72 feet above
normal sea level readings, according to the National Weather Service, well
below flood stage of 40 feet at that location. Further upstream at Paducah,
Kentucky, the river level is at 15 feet, with flood stage at 35 feet at that
location. 
     The Mississippi-Ohio system is the primary industrial waterway in the
central US, and is used extensively to move a variety of products from the
central US to the Gulf of Mexico. Petrochemical market sectors reportedly most
affected include styrene monomer, aromatics, intermediates and solvents,
sources said, due to the concentration of facilities along the Ohio River.  
     With the water levels this low, market sources said barges are unable to
navigate normal channels. One US styrene market participant said as much as
60%-65% of domestic SM shipments move via river barges. Traffic is still
moving, but sources noted shipments are taking up to a week longer to reach
their destinations. "Any place there is a lock, there is a delay," a
distributor source said. "There just isn't enough water to move the barges
along the river." One market source said it was aware of ongoing delays, but
did not think its business had been negatively affected to this point.

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