Eutelsat Com Regulatory News (ETL)

16 Jan 2006 07:30

Eurotunnel PLC/Eurotunnel S.A.16 January 2006 NEWS Eurotunnel: 2005 traffic and revenue figures • Slight improvement in total revenue (+1%)• First increase in Shuttle revenues since 2002 (+4%)• In total, almost 16 million passengers travelled through the Channel Tunnel in 2005 o 8.2 million Eurotunnel Shuttle Passengers* o 7.5 million Eurostar Passengers The revenue for the year has gone up to £541 million, an increase of 1% comparedto 2004. £ million 2005 2004 2005/2004 un-audited published % changeExchange rate •/£ 1.465 1.466Shuttle Services 295 285 +4% Railways 235 234 0% Transport activities 530 519 +2% Non-transport activities 11 19 -41% Operating revenue 541 538 +1% As exchange rates for 2004 and 2005 are essentially the same, it was not judgeduseful to recalculate revenues in 2004 for comparison purposes. Shuttle activity The revenue from shuttle activity (£295 million) is up by 4%. This is the firstincrease in revenue from Eurotunnel's principal activity since 2002. This result is all the more encouraging as the Group's new economic modelfavours increased operating margins and improved profitability rather than thepursuit of volumes and market share. Truck traffic has grown slightly (+2%), accompanied by a substantial increase inyield. Car traffic has seen a decrease of 3%, in a market with surplus capacity. This3% decline should be viewed in the context of a voluntary reduction of about 20%in capacity during 2005, which has the effect of significantly increasingshuttle load factors. During the same period, coach traffic has increased by 22% Railway activity Railways revenues are stable at £235 million, and include payment of £72 millionunder the Minimum Usage Charge (MUC) of the Railway Usage Contract. Paymentsfrom the MUC continue until the end of November 2006. Although Eurostar traffic continues to increase (+2%), rail freight tonnage,transported by the railway operators EWS and SNCF Freight, shows a decline of16% for the year linked to, amongst other causes, a reduction in inter-modaltraffic. Eurotunnel, EWS and the SNCF have decided to set up a working group to explore,together, the means of increasing the volume of rail freight carried through theTunnel. ____________________ \* These figures are calculated using an average of 2.52 passengers per car and38.75 passengers per coach based on surveys. Non transport activities The revenue from these activities has declined, partly as a result of areduction in 2005 of non recurring revenues (land sales) compared to 2004. Eurotunnel staff Finally, at 31 December 2005, Eurotunnel had 2,590 members of staff (compared to3,205 in 2004). Annex 1: Eurotunnel Shuttle traffic 2005 2004 2005/2004 % changeTruck shuttles 1,308,786 trucks 1,281,207 trucks +2% Passenger shuttles 2,047,166 cars* 2,101,323 cars* -3% 77,267 coaches 63,467 coaches +22% * including motorcycles, cars, cars with trailers, caravans and campervans Annex 2: Railways traffic 2005 2004 % change Eurostar 7,454,497 passengers* 7,276,675 passengers* +2% Rail freight (SNCF/EWS) 1,587,790 tonnes 1,889,175 tonnes -16% * The passenger number given is for Eurostar passengers who travelled throughthe Channel Tunnel, and excludes passengers between Paris-Calais andBrussels-Lille. Media enquiries: John Keefe tel: + 44 (0) 1303 284491 Investor enquiries: Xavier Clement tel: + 33 1 55 27 36 27 News release no. (961) www.eurotunnel.com Eurotunnel manages the infrastructure of the Channel Tunnel and operatesaccompanied truck shuttle and passenger shuttle (car and coach) services betweenFolkestone, UK and Calais/Coquelles, France. Eurotunnel also earns tollrevenue from train operators (Eurostar for rail passengers, and EWS and SNCF forrail freight) which use the Tunnel. Eurotunnel is quoted in London, Paris andBrussels. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange