Hyperloop One tells TechCrunch it might be building its crazy fast transportation system at the Jebel Ali port in Dubai if all goes according to plan.
And it could be the first place to build an actual Hyperloop for commercial use, says CEO Rob Lloyd. “It’s got the infrastructure, regulatory movement and kind of capital in place needed to build it already,” he told TechCrunch.
The startup will conduct an economic and feasibility study in partnership with the third largest supply chain and terminals operator on the planet DP World, which operates its flagship port out of Jebel Ali in Dubai, to determine if it makes sense to build there and what advancements the Hyperloop might bring to the region and shipping on a global scale.
The Hyperloop, once just a twinkle in the mind of Elon Musk, is said to eventually go more than 700 miles per hour, or faster than a speeding plane, and have the ability to transport both humans and cargo all around the world in less than a day. Hyperloop One, one of two main companies working on making Musk’s blueprint a reality, has already started testing the tech in the Nevada desert with what it believes to be positive results.
Leadership in the United Arab Emirates and the CEO of DP World, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, no doubt, would like to be a part of that fast-moving train should everything work out and are looking at where the tracks might go should the Hyperloop prove itself capable.
DP World believes it could possibly use a submerged, floating Hyperloop to redirect its cargo and free up some space on the land, should the feasibility study pan out as well. The company just spent billions on Terminals 4 and 5 and will need to move cargo fast as it continues to grow – something Hyperloop One could potentially help them do.
But this isn’t the first global partnership for the startup. HO is also conducting feasibility studies in Russia, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland and in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, California and has chatted with TechCrunch about a similar submerged floating Hyperloop off of the Pacific Coast that could load and unload cargo for shipping as well.
It will be interesting to see how Hyperloop One plans to build out as well as get through regulators and other opposition it’s sure to face as it continues to work toward laying down tracks for commercial use throughout the globe.