The bridge engineering team will be the Danish-German joint venture of Cowi and Obermeyer, while the tunnel engineering consultant will be a Danish-British-Dutch joint venture consisting of Rambøll, Arup and TEC.

The project's preparations are being instigated by Femern Bælt, a company owned by the Danish Ministry of Transport. It expects the contracts to be signed in early April. The announcement of the consultancy contracts came immediately after Denmark's parliament had given overwhelming backing to the project.

Seven international groups had submitted tenders in December, with four tendering for the bridge consultancy services and three for the tunnel.

The two chosen consultancy groups will compete to deliver the best project. A cable-stayed bridge across is the preferred solution although the immersed tunnel is also being examined for reasons including clarifying and comparing the environmental advantages and disadvantages of both proposals.

The outcome of the next few years' planning and environmental studies will form an important part of the choice of the link's precise alignment and the engineering solution.

"We're now starting to plan one of the world's largest fixed links," said Femern Bælt chief executive officer Peter Lundhus. "As the dimensions of a bridge project will exceed those of the Øresund Bridge by 50 per cent, we will have to develop a range of new methods for the Fehmarnbelt link. Our consultants will assist us in defining these solutions and presenting projects that can be executed a few years from now. We are considering both a bridge and a tunnel project to be absolutely sure that all the aspects have been examined before we decide. After all, as the fixed link will be designed to last for more than 100 years, finding the optimum engineering and aesthetic solutions are crucial."

Major subconsultants to the Cowi and Obermeyer bridge team include:

  • Leonhardt, Andrä und Partner, Beratende Ingenieure;
  • Flint & Neill Partnership;
  • Dissing + Weitling. Major sub-consultants to Rambøll, Arup and TEC for the tunnel include:
  • WTM Engineers;
  • HTG Ingenieurbüro für Bauwesen;
  • Wilkinson Eyre Architects;
  • Schønherr Landskab;
  • Oriental Consultants.