Chelyabinsk Regional Government and NOVATEK sign Cooperation Agreement

CHELYABINSK, Russia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

CHELYABINSK REGIONAL GOVERNMENT AND NOVATEK
SIGN COOPERATION AGREEMENT

Chelyabinsk, 15 November 2010. OAO NOVATEK (“NOVATEK” and/or the “Company”) has announced that the governor of the Chelyabinsk Region, Mikhail Yurevich, and NOVATEK’s CEO, Leonid Mikhelson, signed a Cooperation Agreement (the “Agreement”) during a working meeting today.

The Agreement provides for the efficient supply of energy resources to the region according to the Chelyabinsk Regional Government’s policy on social and economic development for the period from 2010 to 2013.

The Agreement also provides for the Company’s participation in realizing investment projects for energy development, gas transportation and processing infrastructure in order to increase the effectiveness of natural gas supplies to end-customers in the region.

Note: The Chelyabinsk economy is one of the largest regional economies in the Russian Federation and one of the largest regional gas markets. In 2010, NOVATEK is expected to supply 3.9 bcm of natural gas to consumers in the Chelyabinsk region, representing 25% of the Region’s total natural gas consumption, with total demand forecast to increase by 1.22 bcm per annum through 2015. The Company also supplies up to 40 thousand tons of LPG annually to the Region, and is developing a network of multi-fuel filling stations through its wholly-owned subsidiary, OOO NOVATEK-AZK.

***

For further information, please contact:

Press Service [phone] [e-mail]

Investor Relations [phone] [e-mail]

***

OAO NOVATEK is Russia’s largest independent gas producer and the second-largest natural gas producer in Russia. Founded in 1994, the Company is engaged in the exploration, production, processing and marketing of natural gas and liquid hydrocarbons. The Company’s upstream activities are concentrated in the prolific Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Region, which is the world's largest natural gas producing area and accounts for over 90% of Russia's natural gas production and 20% of the world’s gas production. NOVATEK is an open joint stock company established under the laws of the Russian Federation. The Company’s shares are listed on the Russian Trading System (RTS), MICEX Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange (LSE) under the ticker symbol ‘NVTK’ and on the NASDAQ PORTAL System as Rule 144A GDR under the ticker symbol “NVATY”.