Founded in 2006, we are a leading ethanol production system technology integrated service provider in the PRC. We primarily provide integrated services including engineering design, equipment manufacturing, installation and commissioning and subsequent value-added maintenance for the core system of ethanol production system in the ethanol fuel and alcoholic beverage industries in the PRC. During the three years ended 31 December 2018, we also provided our technology integrated services for other chemical production systems in Canada, Russia and other countries. With 13 years of operating history, we have gained substantial experience and established a solid reputation in terms of advanced technology skills and proven past performance in the PRC. According to the industry report prepared and provided by China Insights Consultancy Limited, we ranked the second in terms of revenue with a market share of 8.4%, in the ethanol production system industry in the PRC in 2017.
We completed 36, 20 and 27 technology integrated service projects for the three years ended 31 December 2018, respectively. As at 31 December 2018, the aggregate contract value (exclusive of VAT) of our service contracts in our backlog was RMB329.6 million. Our total revenue increased from RMB76.3 million for the year ended 31 December 2016 to RMB257.1 million for the year ended 31 December 2017, representing a growth of 237.0%, and slightly decreased to RMB250.0 million for the year ended 31 December 2018, representing a decrease of 2.8%. Our net profit was RMB10.2 million for the year ended 31 December 2016 and RMB45.7 million for the year ended 31 December 2017, representing a growth of 347.5%; and our net profit remained relatively stable at RMB45.8 million for the year ended 31 December 2018.
We have established a solid reputation in terms of advanced technology skills and performance in the PRC. We have been devoted to research and development to drive improvement and innovation in technologies to be applied to the core system of the ethanol production system, and we intend to continue to invest in our research and development efforts. As at 11 June 2019, we owned 31 patented technologies, which have been incorporated into our production procedures. In addition, as at 11 June 2019, we have submitted nine patent registration applications in the PRC and are engaging in two ongoing research and development projects.
In previous years, our ethanol production system technologies have earned awards granted by industry organizations in the ethanol industry. In December 2016, we have been awarded the status as ”High and New Technology Enterprise” (高新技术企业) and have been entitled to a preferential EIT rate of 15%. Our Directors believe that the awards represented a remarkable recognition from the industry for our technology and innovation applied in our projects. We believe our advanced technologies and research and development capabilities have given us a competitive edge and allowed us to continue in securing contracts from customers through our provision of high-quality and innovative ethanol production system technology integrated services.