RIYADH — The Hyperloop System will support Saudi Arabia’s efforts to become an international transport hub and work in the project is slated to kick off in 2020, Jay Walder, CEO of Virgin Hyperloop One, stressed.

He said the aspirations of Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, in working fast and continuously to develop the country has encouraged them to launch his company’s projects in Saudi Arabia simultaneously with similar projects in nine US states and India.

Saudi Arabia will become a pioneer in this field through its initiatives to develop solutions that create radical change and keep pace with the goals of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, Walder said in an interview recently to Asharq Al-Awsat.

With work and interest in Hyperloop System gaining speed, Walder said the mode of public transport, in the future, would be revolutionized. “Passengers would be able to travel from Riyadh to Jeddah in no more than 48 minutes, and within the same time from Riyadh to the UAE, and in 30 minutes from Riyadh to Bahrain,” he said.

“Four weeks ago, we signed a historic agreement with King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) to host an excellence center of international standards containing a wide testing track using the high speed transport system ‘Hyperloop’, a research and development center and a workshop for producing Hyperloop coaches,” he said.

This will contribute to giving Saudi Arabia an impetus to move to the forefront of countries in the world in Hyperloop technology and high-speed railways.

“The Hyperloop System can support the Kingdom’s efforts to become an international transport hub, enhance the culture of innovation and entrepreneurship, and contribute to the growth of manpower based on knowledge and creativity,” Walder said.

He added: “We were honored last year by the visit of Crown Prince Muhammad to our headquarters in the State of California to see the technology related to Hyperloop. All our thoughts were with the Crown Prince on how we can link the cities in Saudi Arabia with a railway that works with the Hyperloop technology.”

“For example, the time taken for traveling from Riyadh to Jeddah will be 48 minutes. Not only this, but we are also working on broader plans, like linking all the Gulf cities with one another using the same technology.

“You can imagine crossing the distance between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi within 48 minutes, and between Riyadh and Bahrain in 30 minutes,” he said.

He added: “We endeavor to link the Saudi cities and make them, as if they are, close to one another, despite their actually being distant from one another. We will also link Saudi Arabia with the whole Gulf region.”

“There will be a lot of benefits from this link-up, whether at the level of our operational, economic or even social activities. The impact on these indicators would be positive. They will have a positive effect on schools, education, health, places of work and residences,” he said.

He further said: “The Virgin Hyperloop One office in Saudi Arabia will focus on supporting the company’s projects in Saudi Arabia, especially the agreement with KAEC. It is an extremely important agreement for us. We’ll do a lot to support the infrastructure for the Hyperloop technology in Saudi Arabia.”

“We are thinking from different angles. These include road projects simultaneously with the Hyperloop project and to reach an agreement with the Saudi government, represented by the Ministry of Transport.”

As to the second angle, it is to continue work by making the best use of the International Excellence Center in KAEC, he said.

As to the testing track using the Hyperloop high speed transport system, the research and development center, and the workshop for producing Hyperloop coaches, we are not going to use yesterday’s technology in these projects, but the latest innovations in transport technology,” he stressed.

“As to the third angle, we view the Hyperloop technology as a modern industry and it is developing even further. Therefore, we are striving to develop work in it, in Saudi Arabia. You’ll see on the ground how we’ll make the optimum benefit from the research conducted by the International Center at KAEC, and how we convert these projects into reality on the ground,” he said.

“Yes, I expect that we will have actually started our projects with the convening of the G20 Summit to be hosted by the Kingdom in 2020. I believe there is a big opportunity for Saudi Arabia to be the world leader in research and development in the Hyperloop technology.

“There is also an opportunity for Saudi Arabia to become a big source for developing Hyperloop technology. This will not be for the local Saudi industrial market only, but also to provide products that can be exported abroad,” he added.

He said: “What encourages us to continue our projects in Saudi Arabia is the current stage it is passing through. It is different from many locations in the world. Saudi Arabia is a country that wants to move forward and change fast.

“It wants to adopt modern technology. The Crown Prince has always stressed this whenever he talks to us. This confirms to us that the projects will go ahead in an excellent fashion in Saudi Arabia. In less than 10 years, the Hyperloop technology will have spread in Saudi Arabia.”