Virgin wants to bring together 700 million pounds to compete with the Eurostar in 2029

The British group Virgin, a time known for its megastore of Champs-Elysées, announced on Monday its intention to raise 700 million pounds with the objective of opening by 2029 a competing line at the Eurostar, the only ones to carry out passengers on the sleeve line connecting London to the continent, and whose prices are criticized.

The link “is ripe for change and would benefit from competition,” said a company spokesperson in a declaration to AFP. “Although Virgin does not yet undertake to launch a service, we are looking for investments with partners sharing the same ideas as us, and we are delighted with the progress made so far,” he added.

“It’s good for the planet”

The billionaire group’s plan touches all Richard Branson, whose railway company operated in the United Kingdom between 1997 and 2019, aims to raise 700 million pounds -300 million in equity and 400 million loans, said this spokesperson, confirming figures published in the British press. It aims at 2029 as a potential date for launching the service.

“We welcome the development of rail services in Europe; It’s good for the planet, good for society, good for mobility, and it is real progress for users, ”reacted Eurostar in a press release. The company underlines operating “in a competitive environment for years, in competition with airlines, ferries and buses”.

Evolyn and Heuro also interested

Yann Leriche, the managing director of Getlink, the operator of the Channel tunnel, had indicated last week that several other operators said they were interested in the possibility of opening a competing line in Eurostar including the Spanish Evolyn and the Dutch Heuro.

19.5 million passengers in 2024

A record number of 19.5 million customers traveled with Eurostar in 2024, 850,000 more than in 2023, the company said in January. But faced with the prices of the Eurostar, users are impatiently awaiting an opening to competition. It is common that the London-Paris round trip exceeds 350 euros, especially during peak hours or on major departures.

Since the launch of the line in 1994, several companies have announced their intention to compete Eurostar, but none of these projects have materialized to date.