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- Rail minister Lord Hendy has said the move will encourage 'competitive prices'
Virgin Trains is set to launch international services through the Channel Tunnel, bringing an end to Eurostar's more than 30-year monopoly of the route.
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) on Thursday granted access to Sir Richard Branson's company to use Eurostar's Temple Mills depot in East London for maintaining and storing its trains.
Access to the depot is a crucial requirement for an operator to launch Channel Tunnel services competing with Eurostar.
Temple Mills, which houses and maintains Eurostar's fleet of cross-border trains, is the only train depot that can be accessed from the High Speed 1 line that runs between London and the tunnel.
Eurostar has held a monopoly on train services through the tunnel since it opened in 1994. It had argued there was no space for another operator at the depot along with its own growth plans.
With approval from the regulator, Virgin Trains is planning to launch competing services in 2030.
However, Virgin will need to gain additional regulatory approvals from the ORR for track access and safety, and enter into an a commercial agreement with Eurostar as the operator of Temple Mills.
Sir Richard Branson said: 'The ORR's decision is the right one for consumers. It's time to end this 30-year monopoly and bring some Virgin magic to the cross-Channel route.
'Virgin is no stranger to delivering award-winning rail services, and just as we have successfully challenged incumbents in air, cruise and rail, we're ready to do it again.
'We're going to shake-up the cross-Channel route for good and give consumers the choice they deserve.'
Eurostar currently runs trains from London's St Pancras station to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.
Three other companies - Spanish group Evolyn, start up Gemini Trains and state-owned Trenitalia - had applied to the regulator to use the Temple Mills depot but were rejected.
The ORR said: 'Virgin Trains' plans were more financially and operationally robust than those of other applicants, and it provided clear evidence of investor backing and an agreement in principle to deliver the necessary and appropriate rolling stock.'
Martin Jones, the regulator's deputy director for access and international, said: 'With this decision we are backing customer choice and competition in international rail, unlocking up to £700million in private sector investment and stimulating growth.
'While there is still some way to go before the first new services can run, we stand ready to work with Virgin Trains as their plans develop.'
Will ticket prices fall?
Those travelling between London and mainland Europe by train may see lower prices for tickets with the arrival of Virgin Trains. Competition generally helps lower prices for consumers by forcing operators compete for customers.
In July, rail minister Lord Hendy wrote to the ORR said the arrival of competition would encourage 'greater differentiation in service provision' and promote 'competitive prices'.
In response to today's decision, he said it will 'give passengers greater choice, better value and improve connectivity for millions'.
He added: 'Depot capacity should not be a barrier to greater competition and growth.
'We are therefore exploring plans to establish new depot capacity in the UK, supported by private investment, to meet the needs of the market and will set out further plans in due course.'
Virgin Group has not operated trains in the UK since Virgin Trains' contract for the West Coast Main Line (WCML) expired in December 2019.
In July, the ORR rejected the company's application to run open access services on the WCML, serving cities such as London, Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester.
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