Virgin Group boss and billionaire Sir Richard Branson has reportedly got his eye on competing directly with Eurostar after ‘preparing an order’ for a dozen high-speed trains
Sir Richard Branson may soon break Eurostar’s long-standing monopoly on the Channel Tunnel, which connects northern France and England. It has been widely reported that the billionaire’s Virgin Group is “preparing an order” for a dozen high-speed trains, in a deal that is likely to be worth more than £500 million.
The race to sign a contract could help Virgin stay ahead of its competitor Evolyn, a startup with ambitious plans to ‘reshape the travel experience’ with ‘international high-speed train services’. Project lead Phil Whittingham recently revealed Virgin wants to start running trains through the world’s longest undersea tunnel as early as 2029 and has ‘shortlisted’ potential suppliers already.
“We don’t believe there is room for three operators on the route. We don’t think the economics would work for three operators competing,” Whittingham told The Telegraph. “The essential issue we face is not Eurostar trying to restrict access but the fact that there is already limited space available at St Pancras and Temple Mills to meet the combined growth ambitions of everyone.”
It is believed Branson will take as ‘big an equity stake as possible’ with the project estimated to require a whopping £1 billion in funding to get off the ground. Competition on the ‘Chunnel’ could result in cheaper fares for passengers, but Virgin isn’t ready to commit to launching a new service just yet.
In a statement sent to the Mirror, a Virgin Group Spokesperson said: “It’s a huge undertaking to establish a new cross-Channel operator but the route is ripe for change. We think Virgin is the right brand to signal a new era in cross-Channel travel given its award-winning experience in the train industry, and track-record for shaking-up industries.
“While Virgin is not committing to launching a service just yet, we are delighted with the progress made so far. It’s too early to confirm further details about the service at this stage. For now, our focus is on bringing competition to the route, which will benefit all passengers in the long-term.”
The spokesperson added that the ‘next logical step in the process’ is applying for access to Temple Mills depot, as this is the only facility in the UK currently connected to HS1. “We have been in conversation with Eurostar about access for some time and look forward to reaching an agreement in due course,” Virgin stated.
Eurostar made it clear it ‘welcomed the development of rail services in Europe’ but was concerned about space at Temple Mills already being at maximum capacity. “Competition in the high-speed rail sector highlights the growing demand for rail transport across Europe,” a Eurostar statement sent to Mirror said. “International rail is a race, and with our ambition of 30 million passengers by 2030 and plans to invest in up to 50 new trains, Eurostar is well placed to accelerate the pace of this race.”
The company reiterated that it remains complaint with all requirements and has ‘established a process for Temple Mills’. “We are aware of the ORR (Office of Rail and Road) tendering for an independent capacity study – the need for such a study has always been anticipated as part of our depot application process and we will be happy to facilitate this,” it said. “It is important all parties have a shared understanding of the depot given the limitations on additional capacity which exist for Eurostar or any other operator. The wider issue here is space at the depot, which is something we’ll be speaking to the government about.”
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