French President Francois Hollande said on Saturday he hoped a deal to end a dispute over toll-road tariffs, that has hit shares of motorway operators, would come within days. The Socialist government is trying to revise what it considers over-generous contracts with motorway operators owned by Vinci and Eiffage, Macquarie and Spain's Abertis, which were privatised under the previous administration.
"The solution cannot be in litigation but in the comprehensive, definitive long-term management of highways," Hollande said during a visit to a stretch of newly constructed motorway in central France. The French state sets toll increases each year based on discussions with operators and taking into account inflation and investments.
In December, Environment Minister Segolene Royal called for a toll freeze in 2015 and raised the prospect of a new tax on operators which could amount to 1 billion euros ($1.13 billion). In response, operators went to France's highest administrative court, the Conseil d'Etat, to challenge the decision, claiming the government had exceeded its power. Toll road operators deny overcharging, saying their return is only 8.7 percent, not the 20 percent France's competition authority says they earn.
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