French Canadian hyperloop developer TransPod says it has raised US$550m in funding for its multibillion-dollar project to build an ultra-fast vacuum tube link between the Albertan cities of Calgary and Edmonton.
The money was raised from UK project finance group Broughton Capital and Chinese state-owned industrial trading company China-East Resources Import & Export, according to a press statement.
It is the first deal of its kind to be agreed for a hyperloop project, said Sebastien Gendron, co-founder and chief executive of TransPod.
If it is built, the hyperloop would whisk passengers along the 300km line in just 45 minutes, whereas a journey now takes around three hours by car.
It would also would reduce carbon emissions by 636,000 tonnes a year, TransPod said.
“The construction and operation of a TransPod line will help Albertans move around easily, create new jobs and facilitate investment into the region,” said Gendron. “With the confidence of our investors and the government of Alberta, we will deliver on a joint vision of a progressive, sustainable, and growing economy.”
A memorandum of understanding for the scheme was signed with Alberta’s provincial government in 2020. The project’s feasibility study claimed the economic benefits would include up to 140,000 new jobs and a US$15.2bn increase to the province’s GDP by 2030.
TransPod will continue to develop the technology and has yet to acquire land, obtain construction permits and conduct an environmental impact assessment.
It hopes to start building in 2027.
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