Eurotunnel demands a level playing field for cross-Channel freight
CEO slams subsidies for French ferries
Eurotunnel is to go to regulators to demand a level playing field for cross-Channel freight traffic and stop subsidies going to the French ferry industry.
Eurotunnel CEO Jacques Gounon said the tunnel was under-utilised for freight traffic, operating at only around one-tenth of its capacity.
He re-iterated past claims that DB Schenker’s ownership of the Dollands Moor terminal was holding back the development of freight traffic through the tunnel.
He also hit out at the level of subsidies the French government gives to ferry operators and terminals, claiming it gave them an unfair competitive edge.
He identified these issues as two of the changes necessary to grow freight volumes through the tunnel, following Eurotunnel’s acquisition of rail freight operator GBRf.
Eurotunnel will raise the issues with the inter-governmental commission in charge of regulating the tunnel and EC competition authorities.
He said: “DB Schenker is in charge of infrastructure that is key for cross-Channel traffic, but it is a bottleneck, and this is something I will raise with regulators.”
Trains going through the tunnel are required to stop at Dollands Moor for safety and frontier checks, and drivers and locomotives are also changed.
Eurotunnel claims there is a perception that DB Schenker trains receive priority treatment at Dollands Moor and that its access to valuable customer information is putting other operators off setting up services.
Contacts dismissed Gounon’s claims about Dollands Moor, claiming the main reason that the tunnel is under-utilised is because it is overpriced. Eurotunnel charges around £3,000 (US$4,400) for each freight train passing through.
But Gounon said the cost of using the French network was higher than the charge for using the tunnel and this needed to change before Eurotunnel’s price structure could be reviewed.
The recession and strikes on French railways were two other reasons the tunnel was underused, he claimed.
Eurotunnel aims to double the current 1.2 million tonnes of rail freight passing through the tunnel. It sees the acquisition of GBRf as the next logical step, after buying Veolia Cargo France last year, giving it a rail operator on both sides of the Channel.
The Rail Freight Group (RFG) said the takeover brought welcome competition to the market, but warned Eurotunnel that it must provided clarity on pricing.
RFG Policy manager Maggie Simpson said: “No doubt there will be concerns from our members over the fair implementation of tunnel access charges, and it will now be up to Eurotunnel to provide complete transparency to all freight users.”
Eurotunnel CEO Jacques Gounon said the tunnel was under-utilised for freight traffic, operating at only around one-tenth of its capacity.
He re-iterated past claims that DB Schenker’s ownership of the Dollands Moor terminal was holding back the development of freight traffic through the tunnel.
He also hit out at the level of subsidies the French government gives to ferry operators and terminals, claiming it gave them an unfair competitive edge.
He identified these issues as two of the changes necessary to grow freight volumes through the tunnel, following Eurotunnel’s acquisition of rail freight operator GBRf.
Eurotunnel will raise the issues with the inter-governmental commission in charge of regulating the tunnel and EC competition authorities.
He said: “DB Schenker is in charge of infrastructure that is key for cross-Channel traffic, but it is a bottleneck, and this is something I will raise with regulators.”
Trains going through the tunnel are required to stop at Dollands Moor for safety and frontier checks, and drivers and locomotives are also changed.
Eurotunnel claims there is a perception that DB Schenker trains receive priority treatment at Dollands Moor and that its access to valuable customer information is putting other operators off setting up services.
Contacts dismissed Gounon’s claims about Dollands Moor, claiming the main reason that the tunnel is under-utilised is because it is overpriced. Eurotunnel charges around £3,000 (US$4,400) for each freight train passing through.
But Gounon said the cost of using the French network was higher than the charge for using the tunnel and this needed to change before Eurotunnel’s price structure could be reviewed.
The recession and strikes on French railways were two other reasons the tunnel was underused, he claimed.
Eurotunnel aims to double the current 1.2 million tonnes of rail freight passing through the tunnel. It sees the acquisition of GBRf as the next logical step, after buying Veolia Cargo France last year, giving it a rail operator on both sides of the Channel.
The Rail Freight Group (RFG) said the takeover brought welcome competition to the market, but warned Eurotunnel that it must provided clarity on pricing.
RFG Policy manager Maggie Simpson said: “No doubt there will be concerns from our members over the fair implementation of tunnel access charges, and it will now be up to Eurotunnel to provide complete transparency to all freight users.”
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