A decline of 70% The impact of the health crisis on the 2020 financial year of ThalysIn terms of both sales (165.6 million euros) and passengers carried (2.5 million), this was a very strong performance compared with the previous year.
the city centre-to-city journey, the very low environmental impact of our activity and our recognised quality of service will be reasons for our customers to prefer the train
Despite this poor annual result, Thalys management intends to show resilience, thanks in particular to the conviction that the positioning of the rail company promises a much brighter future. " We remain convinced of the significant potential for growth and development of international high-speed rail transport in Europe. "says Bertrand Gosselin. The CEO of Thalys adds: " our teams remain convinced that city-centre to city-centre travel, the very low impact of our activity on the environment and our recognised quality of service will be reasons for our customers to prefer the train. ". Bertrand Gosselin reminds us that " In fact, 2021 has been designated the "European Year of Rail". This proves that the train still has a bright future ahead of it, as it is recognised as a reliable and environmentally-friendly mode of transport. ".
So Thalys is already busy preparing for the future, with the symbolic milestone of 25 years of the railway companyscheduled for June. An anniversary that will see the carrier purchase new trains. But until then, Thalys will have to hope for outside support. The company's management predicts that its cash position will be in the red from April onwards, and is therefore launching an unprecedented appeal: "In 2021, we will still be making a loss and, for the first time in our history, we will have to call on external financing", says Bertrand Gosselin.
