Once you take off all the red tape from the packaging, it’s sure to go really fast.

An independent panel has been convened to examine the delay to the Hong Kong construction of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, said Acting Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor in a report from the Standard.

The announcement was made after legal arbitration was raised as a possibility to settle the disagreement over whom should pay for extra construction costs between the local government and MTR Corp, the developer of the Hong Hong-based section of the high-speed railway.

An announced delay to the completion of the project moved back the opening schedule to 2016 due to unforeseen complications. As such, MTR Corp put the new cost of the railway at HK$68.4 billion, $3.4 billion more than originally estimated.

Though the Hong Kong government had sent a letter stating they did not intend to cover this additional cost, MTR Corp cited a 2010 entrustment agreement whereby the government will fully reimburse contractors and consultants. However, in the event of a “material increase”, both sides are to negotiate the difference in the project management fee.

So yes, a potential legal delay caused by a construction delay may be solved with this independent panel, which won’t issue a report until November. Until then, there’s always the option of walking, or just staying put.

Photo: Gov.cn