The world’s longest immersed tunnel – the Fehmarnbelt tunnel between Denmark and Germany – is to have a railway system of the highest standard and an energy-efficient solution for traction power. Therefore, the client Femern A/S will now consult the industry to get the latest input before sending the major contract out for tender next year.

“The Fehmarnbelt tunnel and its railway is a unique project that requires very special solutions. Exciting developments are underway to deliver climate-friendly and energy-efficient solutions and we are very much aware of this. Therefore, we want to invite potential bidders to contribute to our knowledge and thus ensure that the final invitation for tender is as strong as possible,” says Jens Ole Kaslund, Technical Director of Femern A/S.

Femern A/S’ invitation to potential bidders has been published in a notification of the forthcoming tender, a so-called PIN, on the EU tender portal. Interested companies that want to contribute to the further process will be invited by Femern A/S for individual discussions.

The forthcoming tender – called the TTC tender (Tunnel Track and Catenary) – comprises a total of 25 kilometres of double-track railway designed for 200 km/h trains as well as a catenary line, of which 18 kilometres will be inside the tunnel and a total of 7 kilometres will be outside the tunnel on the Danish and German sides.

“This is a significant stretch of railway with several special factors, where the space in the tunnel and our environmental requirements in particular play important roles. We hope that a number of players on the market will find the challenge and the task interesting and contribute with their know-how,” says Jens Ole Kaslund.

Femern A/S expects to complete the discussions with interested parties in 2022. The actual tender is expected to be published by spring 2023 with a final winner of the TTC contract to be announced in spring 2025.

When the tunnel with electrified railway is completed in 2029, it will be a green shortcut for the transport of goods and passengers by train to Europe with a travel time of seven minutes and a saved detour of 160 kilometres compared to today.

Femern A/S' Prior Information Notice (PIN) for the task has been published on the EU tender portal TED: https://ted.europa.eu/udl?uri=TED:NOTICE:125518-2022:TEXT:EN:HTML&src=0