Construction, Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Investments, Railways, Transport

"It would be a nice Christmas present," Vesterbacka said at a presentation in Helsinki on Wednesday. He added that the construction of the tunnel should take five years but possible delays must be taken into account when setting a deadline.

Vesterbacka said that the construction of the tunnel will cost 15 billion euros and the project will pay off in 37 years. He added that the tunnel must be built future-proof so that it could be conveniently updated as technology develops. "We do not build tunnels every day," he said.

Vesterbacka has also previously said that 70% of the necessary money would be raised from Chinese investors and the rest from local pension funds and investors.

The first of the four stops on the tunnel's path would be in Tallinn, the second 15 kilometers from Helsinki, the third near the Aalto University campus at Otaniemi, and the fourth at Helsinki airport. Vesterbacka said that the trip from Tallinn to Helsinki airport should take 20-25 minutes in the future.

According to the plans laid out by Vesterbacka, trains would be moving in the tunnel at speeds of 350-400 kilometers per hour. He said that this is not a big challenge technically, but the tunnel could be built in record time.

Vesterbacka's project is completely separate from the national plans of Finland and Estonia. The preliminary EU analysis concerning the Tallinn-Helsinki tunnel planned by the state should be completed in February and possible construction could start in the 2030s.