Eurotunnel has put its ferry business up for sale after losing its appeal in long-running battle with UK competition authorities.

The company, which operates the Channel Tunnel between Britain and France, is now seeking a buyer for the MyFerryLink.

The move comes after the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) backed up a decision by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

Jacques Gounon, chairman and chief executive of Groupe Eurotunnel, said: “MyFerryLink is an operating and commercial success. We are proud to have succeeded where so many others have failed. Given the position of the British authorities, the future of MyFerryLink will now be determined outside the Group”

The CMA welcomed the news.

“Our first priority remains to protect the interests of passengers and freight customers. With two of the operators on the Dover-Calais route making substantial losses, it remains our view that the current level of competition on the route is unsustainable and likely to lead to the exit of a competitor,” said Alasdair Smith, chair of the Eurotunnel Inquiry Group.

Eurotunnel bought the ferry company after SeaFrance went into liquidation in 2012. The Office of Fair Trading referred the deal to the Competition Commission (the predecessor of the CMA), kicking off a legal fight that has lasted two and a half years.

Despite the decision, the case could continue. Speaking on BBC Radio the deputy chief executive of MyFerryLink, Raphael Doutrebente, said: “This is just one battle and the war is not finished.”