Nuclear giants Atomenergoprom and Toshiba have decided to form an alliance in civilian nuclear power operations, including power plant construction and fuel production Realite Eu said in a statement. The two companies signed a framework agreement under which the Russian company will enrich uranium produced in Kazakhstan, while Toshiba will produce nuclear fuel and undertake the designing and engineering of nuclear power plants. The firms may establish a strategic partnership in the future, Toshiba said. By securing a stable supply of nuclear fuel through the alliance with Atomenergoprom, Toshiba hopes to sharpen its competitive edge. Experts predict that the alliance will become the world’s leader in the nuclear sector. Previously, the market was divided between four players: the French-German alliance of Areva and Siemens, two American-Japanese groups, Toshiba-Westinghouse and GE-Hitachi, and Russia’s Atomenergoprom. The Russian-Japanese alliance will cut the number of players to three. Moreover, Toshiba now owns a 70 percent stake in Westinghouse. French media have described the alliance as “the main event in the nuclear production cycle.”