Bibop Gresta, the Chairman and Co-founder of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT), will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday with a proposal to invest $120 million (about ₹780 crore) in India and seek permission to roll out hyperloop transport solutions — a concept of high-speed travel.
The company would also seek permissions to conduct research and run prototype at selected locations.
Hyperloop transport system is a concept where a pod-like vehicle travels through a tube at a speed more than an aircraft.
“We are going (to meet Modi) with five proposals, and we are hopeful of a positive response. This is the new generation system that can disrupt transportation; it’s sustainable and profitable,” Gresta told
The company intends to transport passengers in 36 months from the date of approval in India.
The meeting with Modi follows similar meetings with Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, among others.
Five proposed routes Among the five proposed routes, the company is in advanced stage to implement it between Mumbai-Pune and Dhanbad-Bokaro-Jamshedpur (Jharkand industrial corridor).
HTT is also in discussion with Indian infrastructure and technology companies for partnerships and with global financial institutions for fund raising.
Los Angeles-headquartered HTT is in the process of building Hyperloop connectivity between Abu Dhabi and Al Ain and has already started construction of passenger hyperloop capsule at its R&D centre in Toulouse, France.
Hyperloop is the brainchild of Tesla founder Elon Musk, who open sourced the basic design in 2013 as a white paper.
However, another company — Hyperloop One — is also in race to implement similar transport solutions and intends to demonstrate its technology in March. The company expects first commercial freight service in 2020 and passenger services a year later, its Senior V-P, Global Field Operations, Nick Earle, had told BusinessLine in January.