A $500 million test centre to develop scientific breakthroughs in high-speed hyperloop travel planned for the Gulf will open in West Virginia in the United States.
The UAE-backed Virgin Hyperloop announced it will open a new certification centre to forge global partnerships between governments, regulators, universities and private companies to work on the developing technology.
This milestone is a testament to our technology advancement
Supported by DP World, the hi-tech travel system will carry passengers and freight via floating pods in vacuum tubes at speeds of more than 1,000 kilometres per hour.
“This announcement brings hyperloop technology one step closer to commercialisation,” said Sultan bin Sulayem, chairman of Virgin Hyperloop and CEO of DP World.
“It is poised to transform the Gulf region with the rapid, sustainable, and on-demand transport of passengers and cargo.”
Regulators will use the certification centre, and accompanying six-mile test track, to establish safety standards, while Virgin will test its product and infrastructure.
The announcement builds off significant progress around the world on developing regulations ro ensure the technology is safe to use.
In July 2020, the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) and the Non-Traditional and Emerging Transportation Technology (NETT) Council unveiled the guidance document on a clear regulatory framework for hyperloop in America.
The announcement paved the way for hyperloop regulation and deployment in the country, while establishing hyperloop’s eligibility for federal funding.
Certifying systems to ensure they are safe to use is the first step towards commercial projects, including those in Saudi Arabia, India, and the UAE.
Virgin Hyperloop aims to achieve safety certification by 2025, with commercial operations beginning in 2030.
“This milestone is a testament to our technology advancement,” said Jay Walder, CEO of Virgin Hyperloop.
“The establishment of the HCC enables us to work with the US federal authorities to establish and set global safety and industry standards for the new hyperloop category, which can subsequently be adopted and re-applied in international markets.”
The US plans follows a recent announcement to develop a super-fast route in India from Kempegowda International Airport to Bengaluru - the country's sprawling tech hub.
Virgin Hyperloop has also partnered with Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority to utilise the technology for a high speed link between Dubai and Abu Dhabi, reducing travel times to just 12 minutes.
An agreement has been signed with Abu Dhabi's Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) to collaborate on research for the proposed project.
Virgin Hyperloop is one of two international tech firms aiming to bring the ground-breaking travel system to market within a decade.
Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HyperloopTT) is also pushing ahead with plans at its Research and Development Centre in Toulouse, France, the aerospace capital of Europe.
The Los Angeles based company has developed a 32 metre pilot vehicle called QuinteroOne, that was unveiled to the public in 2018 ahead of extensive testing in France.
In 2019, the company released a comprehensive feasibility study analysing a hyperloop system.
It claimed the system was economically and technically feasible and would generate a profit without requiring government subsidies.
The company has looked at connecting routes in the Great Lakes and between Cleveland and Chicago, as well as in China and the UAE between Al Ain, Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Tributes from the UAE's personal finance community
• Sebastien Aguilar, who heads SimplyFI.org, a non-profit community where people learn to invest Bogleheads’ style
“It is thanks to Jack Bogle’s work that this community exists and thanks to his work that many investors now get the full benefits of long term, buy and hold stock market investing.
Compared to the industry, investing using the common sense approach of a Boglehead saves a lot in costs and guarantees higher returns than the average actively managed fund over the long term.
From a personal perspective, learning how to invest using Bogle’s approach was a turning point in my life. I quickly realised there was no point chasing returns and paying expensive advisers or platforms. Once money is taken care off, you can work on what truly matters, such as family, relationships or other projects. I owe Jack Bogle for that.”
• Sam Instone, director of financial advisory firm AES International
"Thought to have saved investors over a trillion dollars, Jack Bogle’s ideas truly changed the way the world invests. Shaped by his own personal experiences, his philosophy and basic rules for investors challenged the status quo of a self-interested global industry and eventually prevailed. Loathed by many big companies and commission-driven salespeople, he has transformed the way well-informed investors and professional advisers make decisions."
• Demos Kyprianou, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"Jack Bogle for me was a rebel, a revolutionary who changed the industry and gave the little guy like me, a chance. He was also a mentor who inspired me to take the leap and take control of my own finances."
• Steve Cronin, founder of DeadSimpleSaving.com
"Obsessed with reducing fees, Jack Bogle structured Vanguard to be owned by its clients – that way the priority would be fee minimisation for clients rather than profit maximisation for the company.
His real gift to us has been the ability to invest in the stock market (buy and hold for the long term) rather than be forced to speculate (try to make profits in the shorter term) or even worse have others speculate on our behalf.
Bogle has given countless investors the ability to get on with their life while growing their wealth in the background as fast as possible. The Financial Independence movement would barely exist without this."
• Zach Holz, who blogs about financial independence at The Happiest Teacher
"Jack Bogle was one of the greatest forces for wealth democratisation the world has ever seen. He allowed people a way to be free from the parasitical "financial advisers" whose only real concern are the fat fees they get from selling you over-complicated "products" that have caused millions of people all around the world real harm.”
• Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"In an industry that’s synonymous with greed, Jack Bogle was a lone wolf, swimming against the tide. When others were incentivised to enrich themselves, he stood by the ‘fiduciary’ standard – something that is badly needed in the financial industry of the UAE."
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
