MOSCOW, June 29 (RIA Novosti) - Indian investment group Sun has acquired a stake in Itera Group (Cyprus), the parent company of Russia's No. 1 independent natural gas producer, the Itera press office said Thursday.
The deal for the acquisition of the stake, which some media have reported as 25% of Itera, was done in the spring of 2006.
Itera and Sun have also set up a joint venture to implement oil and gas projects in various countries, the press office said.
Itera is the world's fourth largest natural gas company in terms of reserves. It holds a virtual monopoly on gas trading in two key former Soviet republics, Georgia and Ukraine, which lie at the gateway to western European energy markets. The company is also an increasingly important player in the energy-rich Caspian Sea region.
Itera, whose charter capital is 60 million rubles ($2.23 million), plans an initial public offering of its shares in 2007.
