MTR Corporation will pay the Hong Kong government HK$2.25 billion over construction-stage delays to the Hong Kong section of the Express Rail Link, under a settlement announced on 2 October 2026. The government and MTR will make no further claims against each other over delays to the Shatin to Central Link.
The agreement settles financial and contractual disputes after both projects had opened. Construction on the Express Rail Link began in 2010, and its original August 2015 opening target was missed before the line opened in September 2018. Its estimated cost rose from HK$65 billion to HK$84.42 billion.
The Shatin to Central Link began construction in 2012. The Tai Wai to Hung Hom section was originally due to open in December 2018, while the cross-harbour section was due in December 2020. The Tuen Ma line opened fully in June 2021, followed by the cross-harbour section in May 2022. The project's estimated cost increased from HK$79.82 billion to HK$90.73 billion.
The government attributed the Shatin to Central Link's problems to several issues, including archaeological remains at Sung Wong Toi station, a wartime bomb at the Exhibition station site, unforeseen geological conditions and quality problems in the Hung Hom station expansion. MTR had already assumed about HK$2.8 billion in additional project-management costs and costs related to the Hung Hom quality incident. That sum was separate from, and excluded from, the government's additional HK$10.91 billion funding for the project.
The Transport and Logistics Bureau said the settlement took account of MTR's responsibility for delays. It said the government had reviewed governance, monitoring and cost-control arrangements and applied them to railway projects now under development. Under agreements for new railway projects, MTR must bear construction and operating risks, including cost overruns.
MTR chief executive Jeny Yeung said the company had reviewed the experience of both projects and introduced measures to strengthen project management, monitoring and the use of technology. Gary Zhang Xinyu, chair of the Smart Mobility Alliance and a former legislator, said the government would not use the concession model for new railway projects. He said projects under construction use the ownership model, while open-tender arrangements are being developed for some future projects.