A new mode of transport – a domestic version of the Hyperloop, which will be called HypeUA – will be developed in Ukraine. Ukraine’s Minister of Infrastructure Volodymyr Omelian announced this at a press conference in Kyiv on Friday, February 22, the CFTS correspondent reports.

"We are creating the HypeUA center for transport innovations, where we want to create a scientific rationale, develop a technology that will be used in Ukraine, and build the first test site for development of this new mode of transport in the city of Dnipro," the minister said.

Omelian listed the participants in this project, which do not include the Hyperloop One company or its founder Elon Musk.

"I want to mention our partners. They are National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, which will provide the scientific rationale for this new project in Ukraine, the Ukroboronprom defense concern, the Yuzhmash company, the Kakhovka electric welding equipment plant, the Interpipe company, the Dnipro Development Agency, the Ukrainian Institute of the Future, and the Innovation Development Platform," he said.

According to Ivan Ogilchin, a managing partner at Octagonal Corporation, the scientific evaluation of the project could take about six months, development of the technology could take 2-3 years, and a test site in Dnipro is necessary for negotiations with Musk to begin in later.

Octagonal Corporation is already implementing a similar project in Mexico, and it will participate in construction of the facility in Dnipro.

On the phases of implementation of HypeUA, the minister of infrastructure said, "We have developed three phases of implementation of this project for ourselves. The first phase rests on the shoulders of the Ukrainian National Academy of Sciences. We hope that this project will be declared as a priority in the near future. We will obtain a scientific assessment in order to calculate all the risks and the full potential. Then, we will proceed to the second phase, which will involve creation of a test site in Dnipro. We plan to finance this primarily with private investments. I do not think that the government will be the effective owner, builder, or developer of the new mode of transport. After the test phase, we will move to production."

According to Omelian, the test launch of the facility may take place in 2-3 years.