He died yesterday at the age of 67 Ravil Maganovchairman of the board of the Russian oil giant Lukoil and the latest link in the chain of mysterious deaths of energy business leaders in Russia during the last months.

The Lukoil message, confirming the sad event, does not mention the circumstances of the death, but only states that Maganov “died after a serious illness.” The Russian news agency TASS reported that the director of Lukoil jumped out of the sixth floor window of the Moscow Central Hospital, where he was being treated, and died. The same agency later suggested that it was a suicide.

Company

Lukoil was founded in 1991 and today is the second largest Russian company in terms of turnover after Gazprom and the largest in the private sector. Maganov joined the company in 1993 and was appointed chairman of the board of directors two years ago. Unlike the vast majority of Russian companies, Lukoil has taken a public position on it war in Ukraine, distancing itself from the Russian invasion. In a March 3 statement, the company’s board expressed concern over the “tragic events” in Ukraine and called for “an early end to the armed conflict” through negotiations.

Two people who knew the deceased and spoke to Reuters assessed that it was indeed a suicide very unlikely. Another source from Lukoil management said that the prevailing opinion within the company is that Maganov committed suicide, although until yesterday no one had seen evidence to support this version. The prosecutor’s office in Moscow, until yesterday evening, avoided any assessments or assumptions.

International concern

Several energy company executives have died under mysterious circumstances in recent months.

What worries the international media is the accumulation this year of several similar mysterious incidents. The day after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, i.e. February 25, the Russian media reported that Alexander Tyulakovthe head of Gazprom, was found dead in his garage in St. Petersburg.

In April Sergey ProtoseniyaThe former chief executive of Novatek, Russia’s largest liquefied natural gas company, has been found dead with his wife and daughter in a villa in Catalonia, Spain. The Catalan police were inclined to the version that Protosenia killed his wife and daughter, and then committed suicide.

The next strange incident occurred in May, when the Russian media reported that the former Lukoil chief executive Alexander Shubotin, was found dead at the age of 43 in the basement of a residential building on the outskirts of Moscow. Local media reported that he had a heart attack after consuming valerian, an herb prescribed to him by a shaman that can cause irregular heart rhythms in some people. In the same month it became known that Vladislav Avaevformer vice-president of Gazprom, found dead in a Moscow apartment under conditions identical to those of Protosenia, i.e. next to the bodies of his wife and daughter.

Ravil Maganov maintained close professional and friendly relations with the billionaire founder of Lukoil, Vajit Alekperov. Former Soviet Deputy Oil Minister Alekperov resigned as chairman of a Russian multinational corporation in April last year, a week after the UK imposed a travel ban and an asset freeze under sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. Maganov often accompanied Alekperov to meetings between the leaders of the energy giants and the relevant energy minister, where Russian intervention in OPEC meetings was planned.

Lukoil said in a statement that thanks to Maganov’s talent, the company has become one of the largest oil companies in the world, and expresses sincere condolences to the family of the deceased from thousands of its employees.

Absence of Putin

Vladimir Putin won’t go to his funeral after all Mikhail Gorbachev, which will be held tomorrow Saturday in Moscow, as announced by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, citing the busy schedule of the Russian president. But on the eve of his departure for Kaliningrad, Putin visited the hospital where the last leader of the USSR was convalescing to pay his respects. Public television showed the Russian leader walking towards Gorbachev’s open coffin and placing a bouquet of red roses. After standing silently by the corpse for several minutes, he bowed his head, touched the coffin, crossed himself and left. The funeral ceremony will take place at the House of Trade Unions, which hosted many state funerals during the Soviet Union, while Gorbachev’s body will be buried at the Novodevichy Cemetery. Asked if there would be a state funeral, Peskov replied that there would be “elements of a state funeral,” which translates to an elegant “no.”