Rome - Italy's largest natural gas and oil company, Eni, said Friday its third-quarter net profit rose 37 per cent thanks to soaring crude oil prices and boosted production.

Net profit increased to 2.94 billion euros (dollars 3.83 billion) from the 2.15 billion euros registered in the same period in 2007, Eni said in a statement.

"Eni has delivered another quarter of excellent results driven by strong production growth and good operational performance in all our divisions," Eni CEO Paolo Scaroni said in the statement.

Eni said oil and natural gas production for the third quarter rose 6.3 per cent to 1.76 million barrels a day from the third quarter of 2007, mainly as a result of assets that were acquired in Congo and Turkmenistan early this year:

Increased production in Angola, Congo, Egypt, Pakistan and Venezuela also contributed to the profit rise, the company said.

Eni estimates production of liquids and natural gas to increase by some 3 per cent in 2008 over the previous year, when the company pumped an average of 1.74 million barrels a day.

By mid-morning Friday, Eni shares were down 1.69 per cent on Milan Bourse trading at 17.46 euros. (dpa)