Celebrations boost Eurotunnel toward record breaking year
Celebrations for the Diamond Jubilee and the Olympic Games have boosted Eurotunnel to its best ever financial position.
Fourth quarter revenue at Eurotunnel grew by 12 per cent year-on-year to €246 million, taking its total for 2012 to €993 million, 14 per cent higher than in 2011.
Annual revenue from Eurotunnel shuttles came to €478.1 million, up 16 per cent from 2011.
Le Shuttle transported 2.42 million cars last year, seven per cent more than in 2011.
Over the same period the number of coaches increased by five per cent to 59,000.
Eurotunnel said the growth came despite a 2.4 per cent contraction in the cross-Channel car market.
As a result, its market share improved by 4.4 points to 50.8 per cent in 2012, with major events such as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the London Olympic Games catalysts for this growth.
“Overall, although the economic crisis is not yet over and competition remains strong in the cross-Channel market, customers continue to demonstrate strong loyalty to the Eurotunnel system,” the company explained in a statement.
“The high frequency of departures, the short journey time, the levels of punctuality and the minimal impact on the environment encourage industrial and individual customers to turn to Eurotunnel, whose business model and the capacity of whose staff to adapt to the increases in traffic should be recognised.”