TWO YEARS after the British and French governments agreed in principle to extend Eurotunnel’s concession to 99 years, their action was approved by the Assemblée Nationale in Paris on June 30. The original 55-year concession granted in 1987 would have terminated in 2042. It was extended by 10 years in 1993, but will now run to July 2086.
With this measure legally in place, the 2001 and 2003 warrants issued free to shareholders as part of the company’s financial restructuring can be traded separately. Shareholders have until December 31 2001 to exchange eight of the 2001 warrants for one unit (twin-share) at an exercise price of 59p. The company will also be able to depreciate its fixed assets over a longer period, reducing the annual charge in the accounts. This will have the effect of increasing the operating profit by £15m to £30m over the next few years.
At the end of June, Eurotunnel announced that it was ordering a further 11 Bo-Bo-Bo electric locos from the Euroshuttle consortium of Brush Traction and Adtranz, bringing its fleet to 59. Destined to operate HGV shuttle trains, the new locos will start to roll out of the Brush works in Loughborough in March 2001. The contract includes an option for a further 10 units. Four of the 11 will have the standard 5·6MW traction package fitted to the existing fleet. The remaining seven will have IGBT traction controls allowing a continuous rating of 7MW to handle heavier HGV shuttles (RG 4.99 p334).
