Drill-and-blast excavation began in November 2011 in the 2.6km tunnel, which will carry the line beneath Kai Kung Leung in the New Territories.

The breakthrough marks the completion of the 12.9km of drill-and-blast tunnel excavation work required for the project.

Originally scheduled for completion this year, the 200km/h Hong Kong section of the ERL is due to open by the end of 2017, reducing the Hong Kong – Guangzhou South journey time to 48 minutes.