13th Jun 2007 16:45
Eurotunnel PLC/Eurotunnel S.A.13 June 2007 Wednesday 13 June 2007 Embargoed 16:40 Eurotunnel signs railway partnership agreement with the Port of Dunkirk Eurotunnel and the Port Autonome de Dunkerque (PAD) have today, Wednesday 13June 2007, signed a strategic partnership agreement with the intention ofdeveloping a coordinated approach to rail freight activities. Only 30 miles apart, Eurotunnel and the PAD manage major infrastructures on theFrench north coast which in 2006 transported a combined 74 million tones ofgoods. The combination of the land based and the sea ports means that there aremany opportunities to share complimentary knowledge and many areas of commoninterest to explore. Following the success of its financial restructuring, Eurotunnel isconcentrating on the re launch of rail freight as a major axis of development.The PAD has substantial rail infrastructure and is the leading port in Francefor forwarding sea borne goods by rail. The agreement between Eurotunnel and the PAD will focus on three specific areasof cooperation: • The transport of containers unloaded at the dedicated terminal in theport of Dunkirk and subsequently forwarded to the UK by rail freight via theChannel Tunnel; • The operation of rail links between Dunkirk, the coast and themultimodal platform at Dourges (Pas-de-Calais); • The pooling of technical knowledge, particularly in the field ofsafety and railway operations. The partnership agreement between Eurotunnel and the PAD was signed at theheadquarters of the Communaute urbaine de Dunkerque, in the presence of itsPresident, Michel Delebarre, previously a Minister of State in the Frenchgovernment, who wholeheartedly supports the partnership. Jacques Gounon, Chairman and Chief Executive of Eurotunnel said, "This agreementshows that Eurotunnel is committing itself with determination to the path ofdevelopment and confirms our intention to re-launch rail freight, transportwhich is good for the environment." Jean-Claude Terrier, Managing Director of the Port Autonome de Dunkerque, said "The contacts we have established over several years demonstrate how wecomplement each other in a number of areas. This agreement will enable us to putthem into action" Ndegrees 026/2007 For media enquiries contact on + 44 (0) 1303 284491Email: [email protected] www.portdedunkerque.fr This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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