In 1999 TENEX exported the nuclear fuel cycle products and services practically to all regions of the world and occupies a substantial portion in all sectors of the world market of the nuclear fuel cycle.
High quality of services and advantages of applying modern technologies of the Russian nuclear power industry enabled the company to strengthen its positions in the leading industrially developed countries. In 1999 some existing long-term uranium delivery contracts with our traditional customers were extended. The contracts with the Western-European enrichment companies for enrichment of the customer's depleted uranium (tails of the separated enrichment cycle of uranium fabrication) were also extended.
Policy of TENEX in the global market is targeted to a comprehensive solution of the issues that the partners and customers face with regards to their specific features and actual needs and resulted in many respects into the company's success in the new markets. In 1999 TENEX concluded the first contract for delivery of Russian uranium enrichment services with the largest Japanese electric power company "Tepco".

Implementation of the intergovernmental agreement on deliveries of low enriched uranium (LEU), derived from weapons-grade high enriched uranium (HEU) to the U.S.A. (HEU-LEU Agreement) plays a specific role in the activities of TENEX in 1999 as well as in the previous year. The company considers its role as the executive agent in the implementation of HEU-LEU Agreement as a high evaluation of its activities and high degree of confidence from the Russian Federation Government.
TENEX understands the great significance of the agreement for the Russian nuclear power industry and science as well as for building up the national budget. In 1999 the revenues under HEU-LEU Agreement accounted for 25% of the total currency revenues in the nuclear power industry. Fundamental basic scientific researches and safety upgrading for nuclear facilities and conversion programs are financed out of the said funds.
Upon conclusion of the Agreement, by the end of 1999, over 2,2 thousand MT of LEU, equivalent to approximately 75 tons of HEU were delivered from Russia to the Union States. An important milestone in 1999 was the resolution of issue related to the sale of LEU feed component, which could be sold in the US market only under the observance of some legislative restrictions. In early 1999, the Ministry of Russian Federation for atomic energy entered into the Agreement with US Department of Energy on returning of unused natural feed component and payment for the feed, stockpiled in the United States in 1997-98. Concurrently, TENEX signed a long-term contract on the sales of HEU feed with a consortium of the Western companies.

Along with the deliveries of uranium products in 1999 supplies of fresh nuclear fuel for traditional partners in Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Hungary and Finland were furnished.
It is important to highlight such prospective direction as fabrication of nuclear fuel under the Western projects at the Russian plants using customers' raw material and components. Last years TENEX has been fruitfully cooperating in this area with "Siemens" (Germany) and ABB (Sweden).

Reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel is an important area of TENEX operations. In 1999 the contracts concluded with Slovak and Bulgarian companies were executed, efforts were also made to continue cooperation with Hungarian and Czech partners in the above field.
Initial contacts were established with foreign customers in connection with several new projects including reprocessing of irradiated nuclear fuel from research reactors, constructed under the Russian (Soviet) technical assistance abroad.

Positions of TENEX in the isotope market have become considerably stronger. Implementation of flexible pricing policy enables the company to secure a whole series of orders from new customers as well as to significantly increase the portfolio of orders from traditional customers. Appearance in the market with offers on new isotope products such as Palladium-103, Silicon-28, Boron-10, Ruthenium-106 etc. played an important role in the expansion of the export volume. Positive sales dynamics of radioactive isotope products has remained. In 1999 the total export of isotopes increased by more than 25% and in the last three years has doubled.Concurrently the company's share in deliveries of stable isotopes from Russia to the foreign markets totals approximately to 43%. In 1999 TENEX together with the Ministry of the Russian Federation for Atomic Energy performed a complex of activities to improve export of stable isotopes to protect the interests of the Russian manufacturers under the conditions of aggressive competition in the world market.

TENEX has constantly continued to expand its presence in the market of high-technology equipment, instrumentation and material and has increased sales volumes by approximately 25% in the said direction as compared to 1998.The major portion of equipment, apparatus and material export in 1999 includes deliveries of accelerators and cyclotrons to China and Egypt, radiation detectors to Yugoslavia, Great Britain, USA and the Czech Republic. For the last years TENEX has covered approximately 20% of the world market demand in radiation equipment.Another field of activity, which determines the export volume of conventional (non-uranium) products, has included deliveries of calcium metal, zirconium and its products as well as optic glass and super conducting alloys. For example, supplies of calcium metal cover about 15% of the world market demand.

Intensive years of TENEX operations in the external as well as in the inetrnal markets, its well-developed positive investment image have enabled TENEX to start attract investments into the Russian nuclear power industry.
In 1999 TENEX offered a number of investment projects and proposals aimed at the implementation of conversion programs for the national power industry.
Currently an active work is being furnished to attract investments into the projects to create new capacities for production of super-clean materials such as gallium, germanium, scandium, etc. The project for fabrication of enriched isotope Boron-10 is in the progress of implementation. Much attention is attracted to the environmental Russian programs related to the Russian nuclear power industry. The first contract on receipt and reprocessing of low-active metal scrap is being finished for signing.

Today, to achieve success under circumstances of tough competition in the world market of nuclear fuel cycle products and services becomes more complicated. Success in business is in many respects achieved by management quality, application of corporate modern technologies and introduction of state-of-the-art information technologies. To achieve the afore goal restructuring since 1999 has been carried out that includes all aspects of TENEX activities. Thorough analysis of the company's operations and a system of changes within the framework of the said restructuring has been performed to enhance the efficiency of the company's operations.

The internal structure of the company has been profoundly changed. Today an optimized composition of the trade firms incorporated within the structure of TENEX is consistent with the main fields of business activities of the company: "Uranservice", "TVEL", "Isotopeservice" and "Atomimpex".
The firms have been integrated into the Department of commercial operations. Additionally, the Department of strategic analysis and marketing has been established, financial services incorporated into the Department of finance have been significantly consolidated, and the legal service has been transformed into the Legal Department. Such changes have allowed the above firms to fully concentrate their attention on purely commercial activities.
To provide effective business operations, planning, analysis and timely control in all areas of financial and economic activities, a special Controlling service was established. This service is oriented towards an integrated support of administrative decision-making, identification of negative tendencies in the activities and analysis of their reasons as well as creation of information support for the company departments and services. Following the above goals, the Controlling service has been elaborating and introducing a number of standards and new information technologies since 1999.
The changes performed in 1999 affected not only the structure itself, but also administration technologies. Considering the radical changes in staff management, increased requirements to the qualification of personnel, the key direction on the next stage of restructuring is personnel development. Thorough and scientifically approved set of arrangements aimed at recruitment, evaluation, professional development and distribution of personnel will enable to create necessary prerequisite for rapid and proper implementation of all the activities directed at the increase of effectiveness of TENEX operations.
TENEX enters the XXI century. On the one hand, the company maintains its devotion to such principles of reasonable conservatism as experience and competence, and on the other hand TENEX performs radical changes in the company on the basis of the up-to-date administrative technologies. We feel certain that this path will lead us to success!