UK High Speed One Link Gets For Sale Sign

It now appears that the UK’s High Speed One rail link has been put up for sale as part of the government’s program to cut the £1 trillion deficit of the country. The auction is expected to bring in some £1.5 billion. As of right now France’s Groupe Eurotunnel and Australia’s Macquarie are the favorites to win the auction.

This plan for High Speed One, which links London St Pancras International station and the Channel Tunnel, will be announced in the emergency budget this week. Network Rail was the only UK operator to have expressed any interest in the sale at all. Network Rail already owns the rest of Britain’s mainline rail network.

Despite this interest shown by Network Rail, it does not seem like the company will take place in the bid. This is because the company has already ruled itself out of the bidding due to a lack of access to easy capital. This came as a big shock to the UK market.

Currently, High Speed One is owned by London and Continental Railways. However, this is 100 percent controlled by the Department of Transport. Thus, the government is in control of the rail link.

Just last Friday, European competition authorities approved a restructuring of Eurostar that will facilitate the sell off of High Speed One. Under this new agreement, Eurostar’s current owners, the London and Continental Railways and SNCF, will create a New Eurostar company. However this is based on the condition that the routes between London and continental Europe will be left open to new competition.