Page 14 - FSUOGM Week 36 2022

FSUOGM PROJECTS & COMPANIES FSUOGM

Lukoil exec becomes latest Russian energy

bman to die in mysterious circumstances

RUSSIA THE chairman of Lukoil, Russia’s largest pri- Lukoil was formed from state oil assets fol-
vate oil producer, has become the latest Russian lowing the break-up of the Soviet Union by Vagit
The latest death in businessman to die in mysterious circumstances Alekperov, a former Soviet deputy energy min-
a series that raises since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine. ister, and is one of the few major oil companies
questions. In a statement on September 1, Lukoil said that is not under the direct control of the Russian
that Ravil Maganov, one of the longest-serving state. Alekperov quit as president of the company
executives at Lukoil, had “passed away following in April after being placed under Western sanc-
a serious illness.” Lukoil did not divulge more tions. This was followed in June by the departure
details about the 67-year-old’s death, but the of vice president Leonid Fedun, a close ally of
state-run TASS news agency had previously cited Alekperov.
an unnamed law enforcement source as saying A number of other mid-ranking execu-
he had committed suicide by jumping out of a tives in Russia’s energy sector have also died in
sixth-story windows after being admitted to hos- recent months in unusual circumstances. The
pital for a heart attack. Another Russian news site day after the Russian invasion began, Alex-
RBK also said police were investigating the pos- ander Tyulyakov, a deputy head of Gazprom’s
sibility of a suicide. treasury, was found dead at his home near St
Maganov had worked for Lukoil since the Petersburg, with investigators working on the
early 1990s and became a member of the com- theory that it was a suicide. In April, former
pany’s board of directors in 1993, and was elected Gazprombank vice president Vladislav Ayaev,
as chairman in 2020. his wife and 13-year-old daughter were found
Lukoil has retained close ties with the Krem- shot dead in a Moscow apartment, and police
lin over the years. But in March, weeks after concluded that he had probably killed his family
Moscow’s invasion began, it notably issued a in a murder-suicide.
statement condemning the war, calling it “tragic” A day later, a former senior executive at LNG
and calling for the “earliest [possible] end to the producer Novatek, Sergei Protosenya, was found
armed conflict.” The company stopped short hanged in his villa in Spain, while his wife and
of blaming Russia for the war, but its statement teenage daughter were found stabbed to death.
nevertheless stood out given other major energy Similarly, police said Protosenya had killed his
companies have been silent on the conflict. family before hanging himself. ™

P14 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 36 09•September•2022