POSCO attended the opening ceremony of the European Hyperloop Center (EHC) Phase A test site, which was held by Hardt Hyperloop on September 9 in Weendam, the Netherlands.
The event was attended by approximately 300 people, including including Jens Gieseke, Member of the European Parliament; Prince Constantijn van Oranje-Nassau of the Netherlands; Inigo Cruz Martinez, Policy Officer, European Union Transport Authority; Bertrand van Ee, CEO of Hardt; Seok-jeong Seo, head of the Steel Products Research and Development Center at POSCO Technical Research Laboratories; Yong-hyuk Kim, Head of Clean Industrial Steel Division at POSCO International; as well as representatives of EHC's partner companies.
EHC is a test center implementing sub-projects of the Hyperloop Development Program (HDP), a national hyperloop development initiative led by Hardt and the Dutch government. It is equipped with test tracks and research facilities to facilitate standardization and technology validation of the hyperloop in the EU.
Commercial Hyperloop tubes require approximately 2,000 tonnes of steel per kilometer. With 25,000 km of Hyperloop expected to be built in Europe alone by 2050, the industry shows significant growth potential.
The Hyperloop outdoor test track (Phase A) is 2.5 m in diameter and 450 m long. m. Hardt plans to focus on testing operational mileage, acceleration and deceleration (instantaneous top speed 100 km/h), precision handling in diverging areas and passenger safety.
POSCO Steel Products Research and Development Center, Research and Development Center The steel solutions development and marketing divisions collaborated throughout the entire EHC design and production process. They supplied 352 tons of PosLoop355 steel for the Phase A test track, which is 27% lighter than Hardt's original design. This is the world's first specialized steel for Hyperloop pipes, which provides 1.7 times more vibration damping ability than conventional steel in high speed motion and excellent seismic performance.
In addition, the test track is designed to to enable route deviation testing during high speed traffic. This site also used POSCO's advanced plate products with a total weight of 123 tons, ensuring the use of POSCO steel throughout the entire Hyperloop system.
In addition to the Phase A open test track, the Stage B site is planned to be built by 2027 (2.7 km). The Phase B site will enable instantaneous top speed testing of up to 700 km/h and safety performance testing, raising expectations for commercialization.
POSCO plans to continue its collaboration with Hardt on the Phase B test site using specialized steel and differentiated tubular structures on the main line and branches to provide competitive infrastructure.
POSCO International also participated in this project. In 2022, as part of its global new business development, POSCO International invested in Hardt, acquiring a 6.1% stake and steel supply rights. They signed a strategic collaboration agreement with Hardt in 2023 and are jointly developing Phase B and projects in Europe and the Middle East.
In collaboration with POSCO International, POSCO plans to actively promote its steel for use in future global projects to create Hyperloop test tracks.
Kyu-hwan Lim, head of hot-rolled steel and wire rod marketing at POSCO, said: “In a zero-carbon future, while intercontinental passenger and cargo transportation will be carried out by aircraft and ships, we believe that Hyperloop, with its superior energy efficiency and transportation speed, will power travel between megacities. We will make careful preparations to ensure that POSCO Group remains competitive as a major player in the steel market for future shipments."
