New phase in the Fehmarnbelt project
In the first quarter, work on Denmark’s largest infrastructure project entered a new phase. With the maritime authorities’ approval of the special vessel Ivy, the way was paved for the immersion of the large tunnel elements that will form the Fehmarnbelt Link.
On 7 May 2026, the first of the 217-metre-long tunnel elements was positioned off the tunnel portal at Rødbyhavn on Lolland. The next is expected to be immersed in mid-June. Production and immersion of tunnel elements will be the main activity on the project in the coming years.
Sund & Bælt will prepare a new overall plan for the project, taking into account delays and the financial consequences of other factors such as Covid-19, hyperinflation, the war in Ukraine and the German environmental requirements for the project. The timetable will be prepared after the immersion of five standard elements and one special element in order to ensure the best possible basis for the calculations.
The project can still be carried out as a user-paid facility with a repayment period as set out in the Construction Act.
The overall plan entails that the road part of the tunnel will open first. Work on the railway will then begin once the installation of mechanical and electrical equipment for the road has been completed.
Harsh winter impacted traffic on the Storebælt Link
Severe winter weather at the beginning of the year led to a slight decline in road traffic on the Storebælt Link in the first quarter. The unusually prolonged snowfall, particularly in February, was reflected in the statistics, while the picture was normal in March. Passenger car traffic fell by 1.4 percent, while lorry traffic rose by 0.5 per cent compared with the first quarter of 2025. Overall road traffic declined by 1.2 percent in the first quarter.
“Although the cold winter weather affected traffic across Denmark in the first months of the year, the decline on the Storebælt Link was modest. We are looking ahead to a very high level of activity in the second quarter on the Fehmarnbelt Link and several major construction projects in and around Copenhagen,” says CEO of Sund & Bælt, Mikkel Hemmingsen.
Other major activities
- Sund & Bælt initiated in February an environmental impact assessment of a new dyke on Amager South to provide storm surge protection for the capital’s critical infrastructure.
- At the end of March, Sund & Bælt began the planned expansion of the Øresund motorway.
- Sund & Bælt, in collaboration with DTU, has conducted a trial of congestion charging for passenger cars. The technology is mature and can be implemented in existing systems.
Sund & Bælt’s financial key figures
The Group’s net revenue for the period was DKK 839 million, corresponding to an increase of 1.8 percent. The increase in revenue is primarily attributable to higher revenue from the Storebælt Link. The rise in road revenue is mainly due to the annual inflation adjustment of tariffs.
The Group’s result before fair value adjustments and tax amounted to a profit of DKK 599 million, compared with a profit of DKK 500 million in the period January – March 2025. The development is primarily due to lower interest expenses and an improved result driven by increased traffic on the Øresund Bridge.
Profit before tax amounted to DKK 633 million, compared with a profit of DKK 3,268 million in the same period in 2025. The lower result is mainly due to developments in the financial markets, which have resulted in significantly smaller positive fair value adjustments of the Group’s fixed-rate debt in this quarter compared with the same period in 2025.
Outlook for the full year
Expectations for the year remain a profit before fair value adjustments and tax in the range of DKK 2.3 – 2.6 billion. The outlook is based on an assumption of increasing traffic revenue of 3.2 percent.