OREANDA-NEWS. November 16, 2007. NOVATEK's net profit under Russian Accounting Standards (RAS) grew 3.7% to 11.2 billion rubles (approx. $457 million) in January-September 2007 compared to the same period a year earlier, Russia's largest independent gas producer announced.

Revenue fell 2.5% to 35.2 billion rubles (approx. $1.43 billion), cost of sales edged up 1.5% to 13.6 billion rubles (approx. $554 million), while gross profit dropped 4.4% to RUR21.7 billion (approx. $885 million). NOVATEK's sales profit shrank 14.1% to 12.2 billion rubles (approx. $497 million) and pre-tax profit eased 1% to 14.35 billion (approx. $585 million).

NOVATEK is Russia's largest independent gas producer and the second-largest natural gas producer in Russia after Gazprom. Founded in 1994, the company is engaged in the exploration, production and processing of natural gas and liquid hydrocarbons and had 4.7 billion oil equivalent barrels of proved reserves at the end of 2006.  The company's upstream activities are concentrated in the Yamal-Nenets autonomous region, which is the world's largest natural gas producing area and accounts for over 90% of Russia's natural gas production and 20% of the world's gas production.