The board of French rail firm SNCF has begun negotiations on a transformation project that will see Paris Gare du Nord triple in size by 2024, when the city will host the Olympics.
SNCF is in talks with Ceetrus after completing a selection process launched in June 2017, with negotiations due to conclude by the end of this year.
The plan is to extend the station – already Europe’s largest – and its commercial operations for up to 46 years.
Architect Denis Valode will head up designs on the extension, with a focus on everyday buses and trains as well as long-distance lines.
SNCF says the redeveloped station will set environmentally friendly standards, offering public green spaces and ecological energy production. The environmental focus will be carried through the design process to construction and use of the station.
The project will be designed to ensure the station can accommodate extra passengers during the 2024 summer Olympics, as well as an expected increase in passenger numbers to 900,000 per day by 2030.
Guillaume Pepy, president of SNCF, said: “This project manifests a strong ambition for Paris Gare du Nord. It has been long-awaited. The new Paris Gare du Nord, which will open to the public by mid-2023, will resemble in many ways St Pancras station in London. The project involves a large number of experts from the SNCF team and represents a major advancement for 700,000 daily commuters and high-speed rail passengers transiting through the largest European train station.”
gares-sncf.com