Alexander Ryazanov said, "In two to three years, the Russian market will be efficient enough, and we will be able to sell gas on the Russian market at a profit."
Gazprom said earlier that it expected to make a loss of 9 billion rubles ($333 million) on domestic gas supplies in 2006, and 11 bln rubles ($407 mln) in 2007.
Ryazanov said that the formation of commodities trading floors in the coming years would affect the gas market. By 2010, all industrial companies will buy gas on the market at freely moving prices, and only domestic consumers and the housing and utilities infrastructure will get gas at capped rates.
He also said Gazprom plans to produce 60 mln tons of oil per year (1.2 mln barrels per day) by 2011, and 80 mln tons (1.6 mln bbl/d) by 2020.
"Gazprom has reserves of 300 million tons of oil equivalent, and produces only one million tons per year. However, Gazpromneft [formerly Sibneft] produces, taking into account Slavneft's operations, around 45 million tons of crude [0.9 mln bbl/d]."
Gazprom holds more than 75% of shares in Gazpromneft, which owns Slavneft jointly with Russian-British joint venture TNK-BP.
