Eurotunnel expects passenger numbers through the Channel Tunnel to exceed 10 million this year.
The forecast numbers will help the operator of the tunnel link between the UK and France recover from a 2010 next loss of €57 million, down from a profit of €1.5 million the previous year.
The 2010 loss was expected as the company waited for insurance payments covering a fire that disrupted traffic for several months from late 2008. Chief executive Jacques Gounon said a settlement could be reached this year in talks with Eurostar which operates passenger train services through the tunnel.
Gounon said he expected Eurostar to carry more than 10 million passengers this year, after an increase of 3% to 9.5 million in 2010. An expected expansion of train services, including routes into Germany by Deutsche Bahn trains, “represent a (potential) market estimated at between three and four million passengers,” he said.
Gounon said he was not worried over sales growth, after a gain of 26% last year to €737 million, adding that higher fuel prices meant competitor ferry companies had to impose fare surcharges.