Almost 5 years ago, billionaire entrepreneur, Elon Musk shared a white paper on Hyperloop Alpha in August 2013. That’s when the talk about Hyperloop begun. Since then plenty has happened in a span of five years with the handful of companies competing to build a fully operational hyperloop.
Hardt raised €5M
One of the notable company in Europe specialised in hyperloop transportation is the Delft-based Hardt Hyperloop. Not so long ago, the Dutch start-up raised a fund of €5 million led by InnoEnergy, the European community for knowledge and innovation in sustainable energy. Having said that, the investment by InnoEnergy is part of a bigger round of investments for which Hardt is still seeking other parties to join.
Tim Houter, CEO Hardt Hyperloop said, “We’re delighted with the investment of five million euros in Hardt Hyperloop. InnoEnergy makes it clear through this investment that the development of the Hyperloop has entered a new phase. It also highlights the importance and urgency of investing in the development of a cleaner and better alternative to long-haul transport. Hardt Hyperloop believes InnoEnergy’s pledge will encourage other investors to join this round of investments.”
Investing in consortium!
With this fund, the company is planning to invest it in the consortium that has been established to realize the Hyperloop in Europe. Hardt initiated a consortium with Royal BAM Group, Tata Steel, and Royal IHC a couple of months back this year that focuses on the hyperloop’s technological development.
Furthermore, Deutsche Bahn represented by DB Engineering & Consulting, Continental, and Engie Laborelec have also announced today that they are joining the consortium. It’s worth mentioning that consortium’s activities focus mainly on establishing the process of standardizing and regulating the technology behind the Hyperloop to accelerate its successful implementation in Europe.
Lucienne Krosse of InnoEnergy said, “The hyperloop uses clean energy and is perfect for commuters between the major European cities. With the exponential growth in air traffic and the related CO2 emissions, it is vitally important that the development of the hyperloop receives an extra boost to accelerate the actual implementation and European rollout.”
What is Hyperloop?
For the uninitiated, Hyperloop is a revolutionary ground transport system, still in the initial stage that lets the passenger travel over 700 miles/hour in floating pods within low-pressure tubes. Unlike cars and trains, it won’t be having any wheels, rather float on air just like magnetic levitation.
All said and done, Hyperloop will not only cut travel time between major cities by several hours but also helps European community agenda, which is all about making the transport sector more sustainable.
For more updates, stay tuned to Silicon Canals.