However, services are expected to continue for now and the company has promised to make its intentions clear after the court hearing.
Rival Condor Ferries has given assurances it is ready to step in to help if Emeraude goes under.The French ferry operator is reported to need an immediate four-million-euro cash injection, just over £2.5m, if it is carry on.Emeraude, which carried about 400,000 passengers between the Channel Islands and St Malo in the last year, is said to have lost over £1m because of a price war with Condor and the falling value of the pound.French staff were not paid in September and the company’s future on the route hangs in the balance.Emeraude managing director Pierre Legras will apply today to the Tribunal de Commerce for the appointment of a temporary receiver to manage the shipping line’s affairs.The status of Jersey staff is not known and local managing director Gordon Forrest could not be contacted in France today for comment.
