Eurotunnel felt the impact of the Chunnel fire with a drop in revenue last year.

But earnings were down by only two per cent.

Despite sharply reduced capacity since the devastating fire on September 11, which is thought to have started on a lorry and led to the evacuation of more than 30 truckers seven miles from Calais, Jaques Gounon, chairman and chief executive, hailed the performance.

"Despite the reduced capacity of the last four months, Eurotunnel has succeeded in recording only a very slight decrease in its revenues," he said.

He added that the figures did not take into account any anticipated insurance compensation which could cover Eurotunnel’s operating losses.

"A successful economic model and a reactive commercial policy backed up by a constant preoccupation with service quality have enabled us to retain our position as leader in cross-Channel transport."

In the full year, the operator posted sales of €704 million, two per cent down on 2007 using an exchange rate of £1 to €1.26.

Eurostar, the high-speed train operator, announced a few days ago that it carried a record nine million passengers. despite the effects of the fire, boosting Eurotunnel’s revenue from Eurostar by three per cent.

Although truck traffic rose by seven per cent during the first half of 2008, the fire cut capacity and the overall number of trucks carrried fell by 11 per cent for the year. Shuttles carried 1.25m trucks and 1.9m cars, also down by 11 per cent.

Despite the continuing declining trend in the number of trains during the first quarter of 2008 (-13%), the overall reduction was down by four per cent.

The volume of goods carried rose by two per cent from 1.21 million tonnes to 1.24 million tonnes for the first time since 2004. This followed a new pricing structure for rail freight introduced by Eurotunnel in October 2007.