EUROSTAR TRAIN COMPANY IS ON THE VERGE OF BANKRUPTCY

The British government has received a request for the urgent financial help to Eurostar Company. The rail carrier, whose high-speed trains have connected the UK with French and Belgian cities since 1994 through a tunnel under the English Channel, is on the verge of ruin.

Prominent representatives of the British business community also called on to help the company. The appeal was signed by the leaders of Fortnum and Mason, Siemens Mobility Limited, Turner & Townsend, Pinsent Mason, as well as university professors of London and Middlesex.

The company itself hopes to receive at least some decent loan from the country's authorities, which would save the Eurotunnel operator from bankruptcy. The British business community fears more serious reputational and economic losses that threaten the country in the event of the carrier's possible bankruptcy.

One of the reasons for the ruin of Eurostar was the COVID-19 pandemic.

From the beginning of March to December, the company's total passenger traffic decreased by 95%. Instead of the two trains that regularly departed from the island to the continent during rush hours, now only two trains depart from the stations per day.

The second problem for Eurostar was Brexit. The fact is that the French railway operator SNCF owns 55% of Eurostar. The British authorities sold their stake in the company to private investors more than 5 years ago, having received £ 757 million from the deal. As a result, such a situation has developed due to the fact that the British authorities regard Eurostar as a French company, rejecting any loan applications that British carriers can apply for.

For the French authorities, Eurostar is still perceived as a British company, which leads to the refusal of financial assistance provision.

At the same time, as the head of the SNCF passenger transportation department noted, the company suffered much more than many airlines that received government support, especially when you consider the number of passengers.

The tragedy of Eurostar unfolds amid reports of the continued spread of the new coronavirus strain, named VUI 202012/01. The COVID-19 mutation, which has caused panic among Europeans, has already led to tougher administrative measures.

The French authorities have demanded a weekly quarantine for everyone entering France from British territory, despite the fact that a dangerous strain has already entered the country. France has imposed a curfew and is preparing for quarantine measures, and the UK has also announced a lockdown. And at the Eurostar box office, where queues for tickets previously lined up, now there is a frightening silence, say the eyewitnesses.