Russian energy giant Gazprom posted a 24% increase in its 2010 net profit to 968.557 billion rubles ($34.95 bln) to IFRS, Gazprom said on Thursday.
Gazprom's 2010 revenues rose 20.3% to 3.597 trillion rubles, the company said in a statement.
That exceeded a forecast of analysts polled by RIA Novosti who expected Gazprom's net profit and revenues to reach 960.22 billion rubles and 3.571 trillion rubles respectively.
The company's operating profit in 2010 grew 30% to 1.114 trillion rubles compared to the previous year's 856.912 billion rubles, while pre-tax profit also rose by 30 percent to 1.273 trillion rubles.
Net gas sales increased by 14% to 267.702 billion rubles. This increase was due to the growth of volumes of gas sold to former Soviet republics, and due to the increase in tariffs for domestic gas sales which are set by the Federal Tariffs Service as well as an increase in the average realized prices for gas sold to former Soviet republics.
Gazprom Deputy Board Chairman Alexander Ananenkov said earlier the company's output in 2011 might rise to 515-519 billion cubic meters of gas, a 1.3-2% increase compared to 2010, when output rose 10% to 508.6 bcm from 461.5 bcm in 2009.
Alexander Medvedev, head of Gazprom Export, said Gazprom expected overall revenues from natural gas exports in 2011 of $72.4 billion compared to $43.87 billion in 2009. According to Medvedev, gas sales in the West European states will be higher than expected this year due to the planned launch of the Nord Stream pipeline in the fourth quarter of 2011.
Nord Stream is a pipeline designed to carry gas from Siberia to Europe under the Baltic Sea, bypassing East European transit countries.
MOSCOW, April 28 (RIA Novosti)
