EUROTUNNEL has held talks with the EU Transport Commissioner in an effort to drum up financial support for the Channel Tunnel operator, which is in danger of going bust by 2007 unless a financial restructuring is achieved.

Jacques Gounon, chairman, said he had held discussions with Jacques Barrot, the Transport Commissioner, because his company’s problems had an impact beyond Britain and France.

“At this stage I don’t know what the European Commission could do. But if we talk about building a European railway network it will be difficult to do anything if Eurotunnel goes bankrupt,” M Gounon said.

The Commission released proposals last year to revitalise and deregulate Europe’s passenger rail services. It is also keenly promoting high-speed rail links across the Continent. “Many of these proposals, especially the high-speed lines, will have to be private finance initiatives (PFI),” M Gounon said.

“Eurotunnel was the first piece of rail infrastructure to be entirely 100 per cent privately financed. Clearly if this investment fails, how could the Commission defend PFI for new high-speed lines?” However, M Gounon played down the chances that European funds could bail out the troubled Channel Tunnel group. “I think the French and British Governments would have something to say about that, as would the whole European Community. But it is clear in my view that the creditors and Eurotunnel together have to make 95 per cent of the steps,” he said.

M Gounon made his comments on the eve of a relaunch of Eurotunnel’s passenger services, as part of the group’s Project Dare strategy for revitalising revenues.

From today, passengers will be offered lower fares if they travel off-peak or book well ahead, based on the yield-management techniques pioneered by the budget airline industry.

“This new model will allow us to manage capacity and will bring considerable cost savings,” a Eurotunnel spokesman said.

He added: “It also allows us to get out of the vicious price war with the ferries where the only way to increase traffic has been to keep slashing prices.”

Eurotunnel’s plan is to run full trains at peak times, such as Friday night from Folkestone to Calais. The average price for a car and up to nine passengers to travel one-way on a Eurotunnel shuttle will be just £49 in future.

M Gounon is negotiating with creditors of the company, which has £6.4 billion of debt, and has until July 15 to present its initial proposals.

Last week M Gounon called for a write-off of £3.9 billion of the debt.

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