OREANDA-NEWS. October 13, 2011. The National Rating Agency (NRA) awarded ITERA Oil and Gas Company the АА personal credit status. It is a very high credit status. It is stated in the NRA report there were a few factors in favor of raising the Company’s credit status. In particular, they were good operational results the Company had demonstrated in 2010, as well as its improved key financial indicators, reported the press-centre of ITERA.

By NRA estimates, the ITERA Oil and Gas Company’s consolidated revenue went up 39%, EBITDA increased by 15%, and that of the net profit by 43% in 2010. Improved efficiency of the Company’s business during that year was primarily attributed to a notable growth of the share of natural gas the Company produced in the total aggregate volume of gas it supplied. "The performance results of last year demonstrated that ITERA only slightly increased its liabilities (by 10%). What’s important, the Company managed to improve considerably its debt structure in 2010: as at the year-end, the entire amount of its indebtedness was represented by long-term obligations", - experts of the Agency pointed out.

Improvement of operational indicators and changes in the structure of the debt portfolio improved the Company’s credit profile, reduced risks of   diverting funds from the ITERA Oil and Gas Company business in favor of related parties and allowed for assessing current risks of refinancing as being fair, the NRA’s Report stated. ITERA Oil and Gas Company have positive credit history. It always and fully served its debt commitments in due time.

Improvement of the rating testified to the growth of the basic operational and financial indicators of ITERA Oil and Gas Company in 2010, efficient control of indebtedness and its improved structure, as well as a progressive decrease in geographical concentration of sales thanks to new regions", - Tatyana Pushnjak, senior analyst with the National Rating Agency, commented. According to her, the Agency also gave the Company credit for its long experience, sufficient corporate governance and adequate informational transparency, available resource base characterized by low technological and infrastructural risks. All the above-indicated factors justify the current high level of the Company’s credit status.

"Improved credit rating of ITERA Oil and Gas Company reconfirms the Company’s financial success. We are glad that the results of our efforts to structure financial flows of ITERA Oil and Gas Company, systematic and successive work with the bank community and investors have been highly assessed by financial experts. For us it means a possibility to obtain cheaper borrowing and improved liquidity of bonded programs. Level of the credit rating awarded us by the National Rating Agency testified to the confidence of independent specialists in further development of the ITERA Group’s principal business, the natural gas business", - Sergey Vorobyev, Vice-President of the Management Board, Financial Director of ITERA Oil and Gas Company, pointed out.