Alaska business monthly presents: ABM's Top 49ers: Business Blockbusters Lights. Camera. Action. Or maybe a drum-roll please. The Business Blockbusters have arrived.

At the 20th annual Top 49ers presentation, this year held Oct. 4 at the Egan Civic and Convention Center, the state's Top 49 Alaskan owned and operated businesses were honored. Special recognition went to the eight companies that have made the list for 20 consecutive years, ever since its inception in 1985. These companies, featured prominently on our cover, are Arctic Slope Regional Corp., Bristol Bay Native Corp., Cook Inlet Region Inc., First National Bank Alaska, NANA Regional Corp. Inc., Seekins Ford Lincoln Mercury Inc., Usibelli Coal Mine Inc. and VECO Corporation. A complete listing of the 161 companies that have been on the list over the past 20 years begins on page 87.

Of those 161, 61 have gone out of business, changed names, merged with other companies, or moved elsewhere to do business. Many of the remaining have graced our list time and time again over the years.

To be a Top 49er, a business has to be an Alaskan-owned (51 percent or greater) business. This year, the minimum revenue requirement was $26.15 million. Top 49ers employ more than 15,400 workers and have total gross revenues of $4.9 billion.

The bulk of the list, a whopping 43 percent, is comprised of Native organizations that combined employed more than 7,300 individuals in 2003 and had revenues totaling $2.05 billion. Barrow-based Arctic Slope Regional Corp., which has been No. 1 on the list for 10 consecutive years, brought in the most revenues at $1.3 billion. This is the third year it has topped the list with revenues greater than $1 billion.

Coming in second this year is Chugach Alaska Corp. with revenues of $547 million. This Native corporation was ranked fifth last year and sixth the year prior.

Out of the Top 10, six were Native corporations, five of them regional corporations. Doing especially well this year, as in past years, is Chenega Corp., a village corporation that saw revenues double in 2003 from $117 million to $234 million. In 2002, its revenues increased by 169 percent. In 2001, its revenues increased by 70 percent.

Showing the most growth for 2003, a whopping 148 percent, was Native regional corporation Doyon Ltd., which increased revenues from $56.9 million in 2002 to $141 million in 2003. It ranks 13th on the list. Another business showing terrific growth is Watterson Construction Co., which increased revenues by 114 percent to $62 million. Watterson ranks 27th.

New to the list this year, or returning after a brief absence, is Denali Alaskan Federal Credit Union (47th place), Denali State Bank(8th position), Furniture Enterprises of Alaska (46th place), Golden Valley Electric Association (16th position), Sealeska Corp. (10th place) and Tatonduk Outfitters Ltd. (48th position).

The Finance/Insurance/Real Estate sector had the second highest revenue total at $744 million. It made up 16.31 percent of the 49ers and employed more than 2,700 in 2003. The transportation industry, making up 12.48 percent of the 49ers list, had combined 2003 revenues of $607 million and employed 1,376.

Glance over the next 35 pages to learn more about these outstanding companies that made the list this year and in years past: To Alaska's Business Blockbusters, we salute you.

CLASIFFICATIONS/PERCENTAGES NATIVE ORGANIZATION 43.38% MINING 0.67% INDUSTRIAL SERVICES 9.07% FINANCE INSURANCE REAL ESTATE 16.31% CONSTRUCTION 3.41% WHOLESALE TRADE 1.70% UTILITIES 7.34% TRASPORTATION 12.48% SERVICES 1.06% RETAIL TRADE 6.57% Note: Table made from pie chart. ABM'S TOP 49ERS: BUSINESS BLOCKBUSTERS 1 Arctic Slope Regional Corp. Employees: 6,000 1230 Agvik St. Year Established: 1972 Barrow, AK 99723 49er Rank Last Year: 1 Phone: 852-8633 Fax: 852-5733 Internet: www.asrc.com REVENUE: (Millions $) TOP EXECUTIVE: Jacob Adams, Pres./CEO 2003 1,290.00 2002 973.67 2001 1,061.00 2000 1,034.00 1999 885.47 Change From 2002 32.49% MAIN BUSINESS: SUBSIDIARIES Native Organization Alaska Growth Capital, ASRC Energy Services, ASK Aerospace, PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES: ASCG, Eskimos Inc., Petro Star, A diversified holding company SKW/Eskimos Inc. and Tundra with businesses in commercial Tours. construction, resource explora- tion and development, petroleum refining and product sales, government contracting, automo- tive merchandise sales, oil- field support, hotel, tourism, engineering, consulting, envi- ronmental remediation, telecom- munications and cable opera- tions. 2 Chugach Alaska Corp. Employees: 800 560 E. 34th Ave. and 561 E. 36th Year Established: 1971 Ave. 49er Rank Last Year: 5 Anchorage, AK 99503-4396 Phone: 563-8866 Fax: 563-8402 Internet: www.chugach-ak.com Info E-Mail: bwelty@chugach-ak.com REVENUE: (Millions $) TOP EXECUTIVE: Barney Uhart, Pres./CE0 2003 547.00 2002 354.36 2001 278.64 2000 220.00 1999 135.00 Change From 2002 54.36% MAIN BUSINESS: SUBSIDIARIES Native Organization Chugach Development Corp., Chugach Management Services PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES: Inc., Chugach Support Services Government service contracting, Inc., Chugach Systems Integra- construction and construction tion LLC, Chugach Telecommunica- management, environmental mana- tions and Computers Inc., gement services, vocational Chugach McKinley Inc. and training and job placement, tem- Chugach Industries Inc. porary employment services, hazardous material (oil) spill response services, information technology and telecommunica- tions. 3 Lynden Inc. Employees: 1,500 6641 S. Airpark Pl. Year Established: 1954 Anchorage, AK 99502 49er Rank Last Year: 3 Phone: 245-1544 Fax: 245-1744 Internet: www.lynden.com Info E-Mail: info@lynden.com REVENUE: (Millions $) TOP EXECUTIVE: Jim Jansen, Pres./CEO 2003 426.00 2002 400.00 2001 420.00 2000 388.00 1999 330.71 Change From 2002 6.50% MAIN BUSINESS: SUBSIDIARIES: Transportation Alaska West Express, Alaska Marine Lines, Lynden Air Cargo, PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES: Lynden Air Freight, Lynden Trucking (less-than-truckload Transport, Lynden Logistics, and truckload), scheduled and Lynden International, Knik chadertug and barge transpor- Construction, NANA/Lyndon tation, scheduled and charter Logistics, Alaska Hovercraft, Hercules L-382 air cargo opera- Bering Marine, Alaska Marine tions, air and ocean forwarding, Trucking and Alaska West dry and liquid bulk material Training Center. transfer and transport, sanitary (food grade) bulk transport and NOTEWORTHY EVENTS Bush Alaska con- struction pro- IN 2003: jects. In 2004: Lynden celebrates 50 years of service to Alaska. 4 VECO Corporation Employees: 2,600 3601 C St., Suite 1000 Year Established: 1968 Anchorage, AK 99503 49er Rank Last Year: 2 Phone: 264-8100 Fax: 264-8130 Internet: www.veco.com Info E-Mail: veco@veco.com REVENUE: (Millions $) TOP EXECUTIVE: Bill Allen, Chairman/CEO 2003 323.00 2002 505.00 2001 501.00 2000 518.00 1999 325.00 Change From 2002 -36.04% MAIN BUSINESS: SUBSIDIARIES: Industrial Services VECO Alaska, VECO Canada, VECO International and VECO Continen- PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES: tal U.S. Engineering, construction, and operations and maintenance. NOTEWORTHY EVENTS IN 2003: Exxon Sakhalin Project, Conoco- Phillips Alpine Expansion, ConocoPhiilips Engineering, BP O&M Contract and Alyeska Pipeline Engineering. 5 NANA Regional Corp. Inc. Employees: 2,000 1001 E. Benson Blvd. Year Established: 1972 Anchorage. AK 99508 49er Rank Last Year: 6 Phone: 265-4100 Fax: 265-4123 Internet: www.nana.com Info E-Mail: info@nana.com REVENUE: (Millions $) TOP EXECUTIVE: Marie Greene, Pres. 2003 263.00 2002 202.00 2001 172.00 2000 176.23 1999 135.11 Change From 2002 30.20% MAIN BUSINESS: SUBSIDIARIES: Native Organization NANA Development Corp., Dowl Engineers and Alaska Testlab, PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES: NANA/Colt Engineering LLC, AK Oil-field services, mining, and Management Services Inc., Ki hotels/tourism, corporate ser- LLC, NANA Pacific LLC, NANA vices, government contracting Services LLC, TKC Management and engineering. Services, Courtyard by Marriott, Nullagvik Hotel, Residence Inn by Marriott, SpringHlll Suites Anchorage, SpringHill Suites Fairbanks, Tour Arctic Corp, NANA Management Services LLC, MMS Employee Leasing, NANA Training Systems, Purcell Services, Worksafe Inc., Maniilaq Ltd., NANA Oilfield Services Inc. NANA Dynatec Drilling LLC, NANA Dynatec Mining LLC, NANA Lynden Logistics LLC. 6 Chenega Corp. Employees: 2000 4000 Old Seward Hwy., Suite 101 Year Established: 1974 Anchorage, AK 99503 49er Rank Last Year: 12...