MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Low river levels affecting Paraguay's shipments

After last year's recovery, 2024 is expected to be tough once again, Romero explained

Paraguayan foreign trade operators have expressed concern this week amid dropping water levels at the Paraguay and Paraná rivers affecting transportation capacity.

Center of River and Maritime Shipowners of Paraguay (Centro de Armadores Fluviales y Marítimos del Paraguay) Manager Mario Romero said the new levels limited operations for a business highly dependant on these routes funneling 80% of trade, consisting mainly of iron ore and soybean and its byproducts. Paraguay is also a major importer of fuels, fertilizers, machinery, tools, and oils.

Romero also said that the weather forecasts were far from encouraging. The downspout is expected to continue as rains cause floods in some places and leave others nearly dry.

In addition, he explained that carriers must transport less cargo, which entails higher costs and longer procedures. Romero also pointed out that stones in some parts of the rivers further complicated navigation.

Shipowners were already working together with local authorities for prompt updates on the maximum draughts at which the barges could sail. In Romero's expert opinion, the amount of cargo decreased due to the low water level that had been occurring every 5 years, but now the overall situation has worsened after back-to-back downspouts in 2019, 2020, and 2021. After last year's recovery, 2024 is expected to be tough once again.

“It is a complicated situation, we are below the minimum average rainfall expected, and that is why we are on hydrological alert,” he explained.