The Compagnie des Alpes (CDA), which controls 25% of the French ski market and 6% of the European market, has announced plans for several significant new lift installations over the next five years.

The long anticipated link of Les Arcs to La Plagne with a double-decker cable car (tram) will be completed for next winter after a €20 million ($17 million) investment. The lift will carry up to 200 people at a time and take 4 minutes to complete the link.

Another new lift will link the village of Samoens on the Grand Massif to its ski area. That is scheduled for completion by the end of the year.

The Compagnie des Alpes is now considering the construction of a new lift between the Aosta Valley motorway in Italy and Courmayeur's ski slopes. The investment required is estimated at €9 million ($7.8 million).

Last season CDA spent €44.8 million ($39 million) on renewing its lift installations and is spending a similar amount this year. A further €61 million ($53 million) will be invested over the next five years on snow making at the company's resorts which include 11 leading resorts in France as well as stakes in the Courmayeur (Italy), Saas Fee and Verbier (Switzerland) lift operators.

The new development at Arc 1950 has also meant that Intrawest, creator of Whistler-Blackcomb and developers of Arc 1950, have bought a share and are now part-owners in CDA as well. Another new resort, perhaps not in France, but elsewhere in Europe may still be a possibility in the medium-term.

[Thanks to James Lloyd for spotting this story]

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