As we conclude our 2023, Unitsky String Technologies Inc., an international engineering company, is proud to recognize the results of our work. In the past year we introduced new transportation and biosphere products to the world, achieving impressive results: the first project for commercial transportation was implemented, the construction of the uST test and certification complex was completed, which provides a large cargo and passenger flow, and a new milestone of financial development was marked in the history of the company — Unitsky String Technologies Inc. became self-sufficient. And today we will tell you more about it. Dear friends, colleagues and partners! On the eve of the New Year and Christmas holidays, I traditionally summarize the results of the past year. In 2023, in order to maintain growth in the current geopolitical and economic situation and in the face of sanctions, we scaled our business and improved our internal processes. Therefore, for all employees of Unitsky String Technologies Inc. and international Unitsky Group of Companies, this year was a period of intensive and fruitful work.
And today in our report video message, the General Director of Unitsky String Technologies Inc. Nadezhda Kosareva and I will tell you about our achievements. I agree with Anatoli. And I would like to add that the main work of our company this year was dedicated to creating and promoting smart, safe and efficient uST Solutions in the market. We strived to ensure that each of our new projects becomes a benchmark in the transportation and infrastructure industry, combining innovative technologies with environmental responsibility. Let's talk about this in more detail. International activities The year of 2023 was dedicated to strengthening and developing business relationships with government and business representatives from around the globe. uSky Test & Certification Center in the United Arab Emirates was visited by government and business representatives from more than twenty countries. Among the honored guests were the Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah and the President of the American University of Sharjah.
The comfort and safety of uPods was also appreciated by the Minister of Road Transport and Highways of India, and after his visit we expect significant promotion of our projects in the transportation market of this country. Our transport and infrastructure solutions implemented at the test center in Belarus have also drawn the interest of numerous investors and customers — guests from more than ten countries have visited the EcoTechnoPark in Maryina Gorka. I am glad that I was able to personally meet most of them, talk to them and demonstrate our technologies in action. This year uST Solutions were presented at twelve major international exhibitions, the most important of which are the World Congress of World Cities in Spain, MOBILITY LIVE MIDDLE EAST and JITEX GLOBAL in the United Arab Emirates, as well as two important events in Turkey: EURASIA RAIL and the Global Conference on Global Warming — GCGW. We continue to work on previous agreements and new projects. As a rule, several variants of transportation routes are offered within one commercial proposal.
Thus, in 2023, UST Inc. prepared about one hundred commercial proposals for projects with a total route length of more than two thousand kilometers. Fifteen regions of North and South America, Asia, Africa and Europe are covered. At the same time, more than eighty proposed uST Transport & Infrastructure Complexes are for passenger transportation. In addition, as a result of strong international activity in 2023, new commercial agreements were signed: on the execution of design work, on the implementation of another transport and infrastructure complex, on the development of design documents for one of the projects, as well as on the development of concepts of transport and infrastructure complex, while the agreements were signed in different regions, countries and continents.
uSky Test & Certification Center in the United Arab Emirates For many years, uSky Test & Certification Center in Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates has been a key part of the practical implementation of uST Solutions and demonstration of the capabilities of "second-level" (aboveground) transport. The year of 2023 was no exception. We have completed construction and have begun set-up and testing of the Karat Transport & Infrastructure Complex. The cargo and passenger complex with a semi-rigid string rail overpass is able to withstand loads of up to sixty tons when transporting sea containers and allows us to achieve a capacity of up to fifty thousand passengers per hour in urban conditions.
A similar type of complexes is incorporated in most of the new projects of UST Inc. The string rail overpass of the Karat complex is the longest of all the overpasses we built — more than two kilometers long. During the construction of the transport and infrastructure complex, we performed a unique engineering operation, being the first in the world to lift a three hundred and fifty-ton string rail track structure weighing more than a thousand tons and about two and a half kilometers in length to a height of fifteen meters. In addition, our specialists have completed the installation of a special section — an addition to the overpass, which will allow the uPods to start from ground level, and after the travel is over to lower back down.
The structure connects the passenger embarkation platform and the travel section of the anchoring structure, which are located on different floors of the complex. In addition to passenger embarkation and disembarkation, this section will also be used for commissioning, attachment, inspection and maintenance of uPods. The first stage of certification of the Karat complex has already been completed by the international independent organization TUV SOUTHWEST STANDARDIZATION CERTIFICATION. So far, the supporting structures of the semi-rigid string rail overpass have been tested. The second stage of certification, when the entire test track will be evaluated, is ahead of us.
An important part of the transport and infrastructure complex is the 25-seat uBus Karat U4-212, the flagship of UST Inc. and the latest development of our engineering school. When designing the Karat, I set myself an ambitious goal – to create a unique product for the most comfortable passenger transportation in tropical conditions. And it has been fully achieved. The fifth-generation uPod utilizes improved uST engineering solutions — Karat is at a fundamentally new technological level. In 2023, we delivered it to the UAE from our production facility in Belarus. uBus Karat U4-212 is designed for twenty-five passengers and is intended for urban transportation in tropical climates. The interior is adapted for passengers with disabilities and has multimedia system and Wi-Fi. Automatic climate control system with increased capacity of the Karat maintains a comfortable temperature for passengers,
even if it is more than +50 degrees Celsius outside. The unit is equipped with condensate collection tanks, holding up water which can be used, for example, for watering plants at the stations. The Karat's glazing configuration provides a 360 degree view, which will allow passengers to enjoy bird's-eye perspectives. The vehicle is equipped with a two-stage pneumatic suspension. It allows a smooth ride typical for business class cars,
reduces noise load and adjusts the level of the cabin floor for the most comfortable embarkation and disembarkation of passengers. A high level of thermal and noise insulation is provided by special double-glazed windows and multilayer noise-absorbing coating applied to the inner part of the hull plating. At uSky Test & Certification Center, we have already conducted the first tests of the Karat while traveling on a string rail overpass. The control, safety and comfort systems of the uPod were tested.
Pre-commissioning work on the track structure is at the final stage. After their completion, we will carry out inspections and move on to running tests. Unitsky String Technologies Inc. in the Republic of Belarus Unitsky String Technologies Inc. has reached a new stage of financial development. Since its inception, the company has been engaged in the development of transport and infrastructure products,
while being in the investment phase. However, the company has recently passed a turning point — UST Inc. has become self-sufficient, significantly increasing the size of its assets, which is confirmed by the results of the audit published in 2023. The main direction of the company's commercial activity during the reporting period was design services for transport and infrastructure complexes. In 2022, the company was accredited by the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus and the State Committee for Science and Technology, obtaining the status of a scientific organization. This year we also received a number of positive expert evaluations of uST Technology from leading scientific organizations.
And today we would especially like to emphasize our achievements in scientific activities in the outgoing year. Reports of UST Inc. employees were presented at five international scientific conferences. Agreements on cooperation in science and education were signed with leading universities in Belarus and Russia, lectures on uST Technology were held not only in Russian and Belarusian universities, but also in one of the largest universities in China — Dalian University of Technology. As of 2023, UST Inc. has received more than ten international patents as well as new environmental management system certifications with expanded scope.
The 6th International Scientific and Technical Conference "Non-Rocket Near Space Industrialization: Problems, Ideas, Projects" was held in Maryina Gorka in Belarus, where more than twenty employees of UST Inc. presented scientific reports related to innovative space, infrastructure, transport and logistics and energy solutions, as well as agro- and biotechnologies. In total, the forum was attended by representatives of forty countries — more than two hundred people offline and more than a thousand people online, who, among other things, were demonstrated the operation of uST Transport & Infrastructure Complexes in our Belarusian test center. The construction of new complexes for rolling stock with high load and passenger capacity has resumed in the EcoTechnoPark, which will make it possible to test new-generation uST Solutions. And now I would like to name the main and very significant event for Unitsky String Technologies Inc.:
the first project for commercial transportation was launched — the uLite Transport & Infrastructure Complex. It is designed to solve transportation and business tasks in the Aquarelle Ecopark. It was important for us that the complex demonstrated its operation in practical conditions, having passed all stages of the life cycle of an infrastructure project as part of entering the transportation market: design, land acquisition, construction, starting-up and adjustment works, coordination with state authorities, expertise, certification, and commissioning. Of course, external factors affected the project's implementation. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic slowed down the completion dates. A number of suppliers in Europe producing components for the string rail track structure and the uLite electric vehicle were forced to stop their production, and some even went bankrupt due to lockdowns. Of course, this also affected logistics, and there were supply disruptions. Geopolitical climate and unpredictable economic situation caused more difficulties.
Initially, we planned to purchase a number of components from European manufacturers, but the changing situation forced us to reconsider our decisions and find equivalents in other countries, or develop and produce them ourselves. Today, the uLite complex has already been put into operation as a cargo transportation system. After passing all the necessary official procedures and obtaining the relevant documents, its purpose will be changed from cargo to both cargo and passenger transportation.
The transport will start delivering the guests of the ecopark to the lakeshores and recreation areas. I am sure that uLite will become one of the brightest colors on the palette of Aquarelle and will attract even more visitors to one of the best recreation areas in Belarus, created within just a few years thanks to our biotechnologies on the territory of the former tank range. uLite will allow us to overcome a peculiar barrier to the development of string technologies — an industry-forming innovation in the global market of transportation services. We demonstrate the attractiveness of our technologies for future customers with the successful implementation of the first transport and infrastructure complex. Innovation and efficiency: development plan for 2024 Despite all the challenges of 2023, which not only we, but also the whole world faced for the first time, Unitsky String Technologies Inc.
and the entire international Unitsky Group of Companies have achieved significant results. And I am confident of our success in the coming 2024. Today I will reveal the veil of commercial secret and share with you information on some of the projects that are already in progress. The next step will be to complete the certification of transport and infrastructure complex No. 4 in the United Arab Emirates and its further commissioning. Another achievement will be the launch of passenger transportation by the uLite Transportation & Infrastructure Complex in the Republic of Belarus.
At the same time, we plan to launch two more new complexes at EcoTechnoPark in Maryina Gorka, namely, with a new type of semi-flexible heavy-load and long-span overpass, as well as with a rigid heavy-load overpass designed for transportation of sea containers by a suspended uPod. Moreover, we plan to conclude several new contracts for the design of tracks with a total length of at least two hundred kilometers, to pass the expertise of design documents and to proceed to the stage of construction of uST Transport & Infrastructure Complexes. And then what is still secret today will become obvious, as no one and nothing will be able to influence the implementation of these projects. Another plan is to expand the regions of operation and open representative offices in three locations for the development of commercial projects.
As part of the implementation of targeted projects, the production of the first batch of uPods is expected to be launched at the plant in the Republic of Belarus. In the future, we plan to increase the machinery fleet of our production complex. An important stage in the plans for next year is the conclusion of an agreement on the allocation of a site for a high-speed transport complex with a length of more than twenty kilometers, which will make it possible to test uPods at speeds of up to five hundred kilometers per hour, as well as to create the necessary logistics infrastructure for this purpose. In addition, R&D is planned for a high-speed transportation complex with high-capacity uPods, a hyper-speed complex and a warehouse automation system for seaports. The coming year will witness the ongoing active demonstration of uST Technology to the world at international exhibitions and venues, with participation in ten major events planned so far. The financial performance of Unitsky String Technologies Inc. has shown positive results for the first time — the company has reached self-sufficiency,
so the plans for the next year include reaching profitability through projects. As a result, by 2025, Unitsky Group of Companies is expected to finalize the legal and financial infrastructure for the payment of remuneration to project investors. The New Year is a time of change and hope, a time when we can look to the future with optimism and confidence. I am convinced that the coming year will bring us new opportunities, interesting projects and successful decisions. I would like to thank our employees and partners for their hard work and support in achieving our common goals. Together we have shown what we can achieve working as a team. We have achieved a lot this year. I sincerely thank you for everything that has been done for the company. Together we can make this world a better place!
Please accept my sincere congratulations on New Year and Christmas holidays! May each of your days be filled with inspiration and joyful moments! I wish you and your families happy holidays! Happy New Year! I wish you good health, prosperity and happiness! May it be bright, rich and successful for all of us! Happy New Year!
2024-01-01