Russ Oil-Gas

20 October 2008 - Upstream OnLine - Russia's gas export monopoly Gazprom expects net profit of $30 billion this year, its chief executive said, roughly level in dollar terms with the $29.7 billion it reported for last year. Chief executive Alexei Miller said revenues were expected at $100 billion. "Our figures are just astronomical," he was quoted as saying by Reuters. Gazprom reports to International Financial Reporting Standards and can restate the year-ago figure when it issues its 2008 earnings. It has yet to issue its first quarter 2008 report. The average analyst forecast for first quarter net profit was 246.12 billion roubles, or $9.4 billion, a Reuters poll showed . The forecasts were issued in a transcript of Miller's interview with Vesti television news on Gazprom's participation in a technical conference in Alaska, which was e-mailed to reporters. They were not broadcast. In response to a question about Gazprom's fate in the global credit crisis, Miller, who predicted in June that oil prices could hit $250 per barrel in 2009, said oil prices would rise in the medium-term, citing analysts. "We are working in a price environment that is very, very favourable to Gazprom. The era of cheap oil and gas is over. Even in spite of the financial crisis, hydrocarbon prices will stay high," he said.