Sky pods running on the latest string technology will be used commercially in Nepal after a Dubai company was chosen to develop a $35 million, 7km electrified commuter track.
Similar to a cable car but using more efficient technology to carry autonomous uBus pods travelling in excess of 100kph, the Nepalese government has signed a contract with Dubai-based uScovery.
The company is a branch of Unitsky String Transport (UST), a Belarussian development firm that has been running a 400-metre test track at Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park since 2021.
Bus is currently the only mode of public transport in Biratnagar, in Nepal’s Koshi province, where traffic congestion is a problem. By connecting an Indian border checkpoint with the city’s bus station, the aerial electric-run pod system aims to cut the congestion.
With plans to open the line within three years, it is expected to be used by thousands of commuters and those travelling between Nepal and India for medical treatment. Oleg Zaretskiy, chief executive of uScovery, said the system could serve about 10 million journeys a year.
“Nepal has chosen this because it is very economical and there is no other option for any other kind of transport, like rail or a metro line, because it's very expensive,” Mr Zaretskiy told The National.
“The costs will be paid by a private company, but the government is providing the land and a guarantee for some passenger flow, and a minimum number of passengers that will travel. Biratnagar is a very crowded place, as people are coming to the railway from the Indian side, crossing the border and then they need to reach the central bus station.”
Affordable mass transport
The sky pods move independently on high-tensile steel rails, rather than on a conventional pulley system of a typical cable car, at a cost of just $200-a-metre, UST developers have said.
Development costs in Nepal are expected to be $30 million-$35 million, depending on what size of pods are chosen for the network. There is no expected cost for the end user at this stage.
The company already operates a short, commercial track in Belarus and is exploring another 400m line at Gokak Waterfalls, in Kornakata state, India.
“There is huge interest in this in Nepal, as the government included transport as a priority policy,” said Mr Zaretskiy. “It's the same design as the Sharjah track with the size of the pods and the speed, everything else we are doing the concept design for now. The project will be as economical as possible, and everything will be electric. There will be a traction power station and each machine will be equipped with backup batteries as well, so the concept is the same.”
An agreement with Nepal was signed during the recent Koshi Investment Summit to complete the project within three years and potentially extend the system to cover 45km across the region.
The company earmarked to operate the aerial system is the Kathmandu Podway Company Pvt Ltd, founded in 2020. It aims to introduce eco-friendly urban transport to Nepal, a country with notoriously poor air quality caused by traffic and kilns used in industry, waste burning, heating and cooking.
Air quality
The most recent Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) from 2024 ranks Nepal third on a list of the most polluted nations, with an extremely high density of PM2.5 particles known to cause life-limiting respiratory problems.
According to the 2024 State of Global Air Report, poor air quality in Nepal contributed to 48,500 deaths in 2021.
“Since 2020, we have worked relentlessly to advocate for changes in transport laws and policies to support modern mobility solutions,” said Nil Bhattarai, vice president of the Kathmandu Podway company. “This project’s affordability and rapid build will be a game-changer for Koshi Province, driving economic growth, tourism and infrastructure development.”
With a metro system and high-speed rail links considered too expensive to build and run in Nepal, decision-makers have turned to alternative public transport to ease congestion in some of the country’s busiest areas.
Aasish Gajurel, chief executive of the government’s Nepal Intermodal Transport Development Board, said the sky pods would bring more green transport solutions to the country.
“The government has signed this contract with the private sector to first conduct a study and then develop under Public Private Partnerships (PPP),” said Mr Gajurel. “This is a huge step towards the development of podrails in Nepal. It has also shown that the government of Nepal is seriously considering this technology.
"Nepal cannot afford metro rail, therefore the government is convinced to develop this technology to improve transportation systems in Nepal, as this technology is relatively cheap and can be constructed in less time," he added. "Every Nepali will benefit from this project as people are suffering with their commute everyday.”
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Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
The biog
Favourite film: Motorcycle Dairies, Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday, Kagemusha
Favourite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude
Holiday destination: Sri Lanka
First car: VW Golf
Proudest achievement: Building Robotics Labs at Khalifa University and King’s College London, Daughters
Driverless cars or drones: Driverless Cars
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
The Word for Woman is Wilderness
Abi Andrews, Serpent’s Tail
Results
Ashraf Ghani 50.64 per cent
Abdullah Abdullah 39.52 per cent
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar 3.85 per cent
Rahmatullah Nabil 1.8 per cent
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How Islam's view of posthumous transplant surgery changed
Transplants from the deceased have been carried out in hospitals across the globe for decades, but in some countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, the practise was banned until relatively recently.
Opinion has been divided as to whether organ donations from a deceased person is permissible in Islam.
The body is viewed as sacred, during and after death, thus prohibiting cremation and tattoos.
One school of thought viewed the removal of organs after death as equally impermissible.
That view has largely changed, and among scholars and indeed many in society, to be seen as permissible to save another life.
