Treasury sells 40% Eurostar stake for £757m

The Treasury cashed in twice the amount originally expected from the sale of its 40 per cent stake in Eurostar Cross-Channel train service for £757.1m to Quebec pension fund and Hermes Infra structure an Anglo- Canadian consortium. This will be last privatisation before the General Election. Under the deal, Patina Rail LLP will acquire the UK Treasury’s entire share of the high-speed rail service. SNCF, The French National Railway 55 per cent and SNCB Belgian national railways 5 percent continue to own the rest.

The intention to sell was first set out in 2013, in the Autumn Statement and National Infrastructure Plan.

Chancellor George Osborne said the stake had fetched “fantastic deal for UK taxpayers, far more than people expected we’d be able to sell it for –

it means we can cut the national debt, and invest in our national infrastructure. It’s all part of our long-term plan to secure Britain’s future.”

The sale price initially £300m, there was buyer demand as over 20 expressions of interest to take a stake in the train operator.

 

Eurostar, which began its operations in 1994 between London, Paris and Brussels, has also agreed to redeem the UK government’s preference share in the company raising a further £172m.

The Eurostar sold £867m of tickets by rising the number of business travellers during the last year 1 per cent more than the previous year. The company is investing £1bn on new high speed trains as it attempts to entice more passengers from air travel. It has plans to offer services from London to Amsterdam from 2016, direct trains to Provence from next May.