Elon Musk's Boring Company to build 150km of tunnels across the UAE

Elon Musk’s The Boring Company will build more than 150 kilometres of tunnels across the United Arab Emirates after raising $3 billion in its latest funding round, a financing tranche led by the Emirates, the company said. The tunnelling push is being linked to the Dubai Loop project — a high‑speed underground transport network designed to cut congestion — and comes as Dubai advances a major metro expansion and integrates with the newly launched Etihad Rail passenger service.

“Building upon significant existing success collaborating with the UAE on Dubai Loop, this strategic investment will accelerate the partnership to deploy mass quantities of underground infrastructure across the United Arab Emirates, including 150‑plus kilometres of tunnel,” the Boring Company said in a statement.

Project details and immediate works

The Dubai Loop, led by the government in partnership with The Boring Company, is expected to begin operations within two years and aims to slash travel time between DIFC and Dubai Mall from about 20 minutes to three. The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has said the first phase will cost Dh565 million (about $153.8 million) and will use autonomous Tesla vehicles to ferry passengers through 3.6‑metre‑wide tunnels.

• The initial Loop route will cover 22km when complete, with 19 stations; the first phase will include four stations at Burj Khalifa, DIFC 2, Zabeel Dubai Mall Parking and ICD Brookfield Place.
• The full Dubai Loop is estimated to cost about Dh2 billion and is expected to carry more than 13,000 passengers a day in the first phase, rising to about 30,000 when the entire route is operational.

Alongside the Loop, Dubai is expanding its metro network with two major projects. The Dh20.5 billion Blue Line — which will include 14 stations and connect with the existing Green and Red lines — is scheduled to open in September 2029. The Dh34 billion Metro Gold Line will add 18 stations across 42km of largely underground route, increase network length by roughly 35 per cent and is due to open on September 9, 2032.

Integration with national rail and passenger outlook

Officials are positioning the subterranean projects and metro expansions to dovetail with Etihad Rail’s passenger network. Etihad Rail launched passenger services at the end of June, with the inaugural Abu Dhabi–Fujairah route carrying thousands on its first runs. New Etihad Rail stations in Dubai and the wider UAE are being brought online in stages: Dubai's Etihad Rail Station at Jumeirah Golf Estates is slated to open on September 30, with Al Dhaid in Sharjah opening the same day. Five stations in Al Dhafra will receive passengers on November 30 and December 30, and Sharjah's University City station will begin operations on March 30 next year.

Passenger throughput across the national rail network is forecast to reach 36 million annually by 2030, a figure Dubai planners cite as central to justifying heavy investment in both underground capacity and surface metro connections.

Outlook

The $3 billion investment and the commitment to “150‑plus kilometres” of tunnelling signal a substantial acceleration of underground transport ambitions in the UAE. If timelines hold, the Dubai Loop’s 2028 opening and staged metro rollouts through 2029 and 2032 will create multiple interchange points with Etihad Rail and reshape commuter options in a city already planning for long‑term population and development growth. Implementation risks — including construction logistics, integration of autonomous vehicles and final project costs — remain, but the financing and government partnerships provide a clear mandate to expand subterranean transit capacity across the emirates.