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SkyWay Group

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SkyWay Group refers to a number of companies. These companies are registered under business names like "SkyWay Capital Ltd."[1] and "Eurasian Rail Skyway Systems Ltd."[2] in London, Minsk and the Virgin Islands.[3] The companies encourage risky investment in infrastructure projects;[4] they make lofty claims about the potential of a technology they call 'SkyWay'[3] (referred to 'String Transport').[5][6]

A prototype of this technology was assessed by the Moscow State University of Railway Engineering in 2008. They concluded that "the technology is filled with a large number of system defects" and that the system is "associated with great risk". In 2016, a Russian government panel that evaluated the technology called it "innovative, but only in theory".[6]

Although many countries including Australia,[3] India,[6] Indonesia,[7] Italy,[3] Lithuania[8] and the United Arab Emirates[9] started negotiating with the SkyWay Group, no projects have been realized; Memorandum of Understanding contracts were apparently signed but projects in Lithuania and India were later cancelled due to concerns about safety and viability of the technology as well as financial irregularity.[6] The Italian government has banned the advertisement and sale of SkyWay Group company shares.[3]

The SkyWay Group is financing itself with MLM marketing techniques[1] and crowdfunding.[3] As a result, financial regulators in many countries including Belgium, Estonia,[1] Germany,[10] Greece,[11] Italy,[3] Lithuania[1] and New Zealand[12] have issued warnings about the scheme and accused the promoters of not complying with legal requirements when seeking investment.[4] The Financial Services and Markets Authority in Belgium warned that SkyWay Group finances exhibited "characteristics of a pyramid scheme".[1]

Evaluation of the SkyWay technology

Russia

The technology promoted by the SkyWay Group was assessed in Russia in 2008 and 2016. An earlier prototype of this technology was assessed in 2008 by the Moscow State University of Railway Engineering but it was subsequently dropped after they concluded that the project was "not viable and unsafe". According to their assessment, this technology is filled with a "large number of system defects and (is) almost unrealistic because it doesn’t provide an even path for the traffic". The report also quoted that "Passengers are at altitude from the ground level. Destruction of any string leads to deaths. The system is associated with great risk." In 2016, a Russian government panel that evaluated the technology called it "innovative, but only in theory".[6] In 2017 Moscow University of Railway Engineering started cooperating with Skyway representatives. [13]

Belarus

In October 2015 the SkyWay Group started constructing a test site to demonstrate 'SkyWay' technology. It is situated in Marjina Horka (about 70km from Minsk)[14] and is called the EcoTechnoPark.[15][16] There is unfortunately still no verifiable scientific evaluation of this site.

Unrealized projects

Russia

In 2007 and 2018 pilot projects of the SkyWay Group technology were planned in Russian cities. But specialists of the Moscow State University of Railway Engineering gave a negative assessment of the project and it was not implemented.[3]

Australia

Apparently a test site of the SkyWay Group technology was planned in Australia but a dispute between Yunitskiy and his partners resulted in its cancellation in 2010.[3]

India

In May 2017 a Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Sudhir Sharma the minister of Urban Development of the Northern Indian state Himachal Pradesh government with one of the SkyWay Group companies. Although Sudhir Sharma said the facility would be started in the next three years, in July 2017 the Economic Times reported that the project ran into controversy when doubts were raised over the credentials of this Belarus-based company along with concerns over the suitability of this means of transport for the region. The congress government was criticised for "the decision to sign a memorandum of understanding with a company with no operational projects anywhere in the world" and doubts were raised over the safety and viability of the project.[6]

Indonesia

There were negotiations planned between Indonesian companies and 'PT Skyway Technologies Indonesia'. Apparently they were planning to build 'sky trains' in Jorong (Kalimantan). Members of the public complained about the suspicious sale of investment products and the negotiations were finally cancelled in 2018.[7]

Financial irregularities

In 2014 the company planned to build its first test site in Lithuania, but this project was cancelled at the end of 2014 due to suspicions of financial fraud from the Bank of Lithuania, which warned investors that unidentified individuals invited Lithuanian residents to invest in "next-generation string transport" by acquiring on-line shares of the private limited company without a prospectus approved by a competent authority.[4][17] The prosecutor's office in Vilnius decided, however, to stop its investigations in May 2017.[8][5] In September 2017, the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) issued a warning concerning Skyway Capital who were offering investment to the public without a prospectus approved by the FSMA, as required by Belgian law. The FSMA further stated that "the scheme proposed by SkyWay Capital exhibits the characteristics of a pyramid scheme."[1] In January 2018 The Italian Companies and Exchange Commission CONFOB – a governmental organisation – banned the advertisement and sale of SkyWay shares in Italy.[3] In 2018, the authorities of New Zealand[12], Germany[10] and Greece[11] issued an official warning about investing money in SkyWay, specifying that the SkyWay Group had no license to offer investments in the country.

Projects in negotiation

The United Arab Emirates

In February 2019 a Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) of Dubai with the Skyway Greentech Company to build "Sky Pods" there.[9]


See also

Notes and references

  1. ^ a b c d e f "First Skyway Invest Group Limited ("Skyway Capital")". Financial Services and Markets Authority. 22 September 2017. Retrieved 2019-02-19.
  2. ^ "«Euroasian Rail Skyway Systems Ldt.», «American Rail Skyway Systems Ltd.», « African Rail Skyway Systems Ltd. », «Australian&Oceanic Rail Skyway Systems Ltd » and, set purposely to Lithuania, «Rail Skyway Systems Ltd.» are a few to be mentioned." https://bnn-news.com/genuine-investment-project-boondoggle-scheme-lithuania-national-security-threat-119828
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Sky Way, l'azienda del "tram volante" che non ha mai realizzato un progetto". letteraemme.it. 2018-07-20. Retrieved 2019-02-04.
  4. ^ a b c ">"Bank of Lithuania warns SkyWay activities in Lithuania illegal". Lietuvos Bankas Lithuania. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  5. ^ a b "A genuine investment project? A boondoggle? A scheme? Lithuania: a national security threat first". Baltic News Network - News from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia. 2014-09-25. Retrieved 2017-03-01.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Venugopal, Vasudha (13 July 2017). "Doubts raised over Belarus company credential for Rs 250-crore skyway transport project in Dharamshala". The Economic Times. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  7. ^ a b "Investasi Mandek, PT Skyway Teknologies Indonesia Umumkan Pembekuan". 30 September 2018.
  8. ^ a b Černiauskas, Šarūnas. "Lietuvos bankas: "oro traukinius" žadančio A. Junickio veikloje – sukčiavimo požymiai". DELFI. Retrieved 2017-03-01.
  9. ^ a b "MoU with Skyway Greentech to develop Sky Pod Network". RTA. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
  10. ^ a b First Skyway Invest Group Ltd: Anhaltspunkte für fehlenden Verkaufsprospekt BaFin
  11. ^ a b "SkyWay Invest Group ads are not approved". EconomyNews247 Greece. Retrieved 2018-11-13.
  12. ^ a b "Skyway Capital/Skyway Group". Financial Markets Authority (New Zealand). Retrieved 16 February 2019.
  13. ^ "Компания-разработчик струнного транспорта SkyWay и МИИТ подписали соглашение о сотрудничестве прямо в юникаре". Daily Хайп. Retrieved 2019-02-28.
  14. ^ "Возле Марьиной Горки строят испытательный центр транспорта будущего — Пухавiцкiя навiны. Пуховичские новости. Марьина Горка. Новости Марьиной Горки".
  15. ^ "Transport Of The Future? Video Shows High-Speed Vehicle Test In Belarus". 30 November 2016.
  16. ^ Сидорович, Константин (18 September 2018). "«Это прикол на День дураков?» Что происходит со SkyWay Юницкого - Технологии Onliner". Onliner.
  17. ^ "Investment project from Yunitskiy in Siauliai – threat to national security?". The Baltic Course. Retrieved 2017-03-01.
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