TOKYO, May 23 (RIA Novosti's, Andrei Fesyun) - Tekhsnabexport (TENEX), a Russian company producing nuclear materials, intends to provide Japanese nuclear power plants with up to 30% of nuclear fuel.

"The fact that most of the fuel that Japanese nuclear power plants currently receive are marked "Made in USA" does not necessarily mean that it was produced in the US," head of the Japanese office of TENEX Masayuki Yokoi said.

The main manufacturers of this hi-tech product are Russia, Canada and Australia, however considerable volumes of fuel are used by US middlemen, thereby becoming "American", he specified.

Accordingly, TENEX will be able to meet 30% of the demand of Japanese power plants if it starts selling fuel without dealers.

"In a long-term perspective TENEX has the goal of conquering the South Korean and Chinese markets of nuclear fuel," Masayuki Yokoi said.

The company has an office in Seoul and is currently talking on the establishment of another one in Beijing with Chinese authorities. The Tokyo office of TENEX is considered as the company's HQ in the Far Eastern region.

Yokoi complained that the counteraction of Japanese business and numerous administrative restrictions seriously thwart the work. The government's permission is necessary whenever fuel is imported, stored or transported.

TENEX approached the Japanese market in 1991 and made its first contract to supply enriched uranium in 1999.

One of the world's largest suppliers of nuclear products, the company had a commodity turnover of up to $1.7 billion in 2004. Besides other contracts, the company supplies the US with uranium extracted from ballistic missiles.