The 18km road and rail tunnel will be built using 89 immersed concrete sections lowered on to the sea bed. Completion of the project within 10 years will mean that motorists travelling between the two countries should see their journeys reduce by around 140km.

Last week Femern A/S – the organisation behind the project – entered into negotiations with construction consortia to start a series of activities on the Danish side. These include creation of a tunnel portal, construction of a factory to cast tunnel sections and establishing a works harbour which will accept construction materials and ship out completed parts to sea.

"Now we embark on a new chapter of the Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link project,” said the project’s chief executive Claus Baunkjær. “The implementation of a number of major construction activities will make best use of the time and ensure progress in the project.”

Authorities in Germany signed a construction permit for the project in December, which was the last remaining hurdle for the scheme to overcome. The €7Bn tunnel will be funded by road tolls and subsidy from the European Union.

Construction of the tunnel had been expected to begin three years ago but firms submitted prices that were higher than expected. The build programme was extended by two years to realise savings.

When complete the tunnel will form the final piece of a 3500km trans European transport corridor between Scandinavia and the Mediterranean. The penultimate upgrade to the route is the Brenner Base rail tunnel beneath the Alps in Austria, which will complete within eight years.

(Image: Femern A/S)