THE cost of the 88km southern rail access line to the Fehmarnbelt Tunnel connecting Denmark and Germany has risen steeply to €10.7bn. According to local media outlet NDR, a price hike of €2.6bn has taken place in the last six months and means the access line will cost around 45% more than the €7.4bn budget for the whole 160km project, including the tunnel itself.
The latest cost increase for construction of a new electrified double-track line between Lübeck and the southern tunnel portal was confirmed in a previously secret memo by the German Federal Court of Audit, NDR says.
German Rail (DB), which is delivering the new line, has not commented on the memo, but confirms: “It is true that we must assume a significant increase in costs, particularly due to inflation and the current situation in the construction industry."
The new alignment of the southern access line includes numerous bridges and grade separations, as well as extensive environmental mitigation, all of which have contributed to the rising costs.
It is unclear whether further price increases for the access line are likely. “The new costs for the rail connection of the Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link are still being determined," DB says.
Two-stage opening
Last month, Sund & Bælt, the body delivering the Fehmarnbelt Tunnel project, announced that opening is expected to take place in two stages, following a slip from the original opening date of 2029 to at least 2031. Under the revised timetable, the road connection will open first, while the rail link will open at an unspecified later date.
“It is unfortunate for the green transition and for rail passengers that the railway cannot open at the same time as the road connection,” says Mikkel Hemmingsen, CEO of Sund & Bælt.
“A phased opening makes it possible to put the tunnel into use earlier for road traffic, while also reducing complexity in the final stage of the project."
In July 2025, the Germany’s Federal Ministry of Transport (BMV) announced that it would not be possible to open the southern rail link as planned in 2029 due to lengthy and complex planning processes.
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