Ravil Ulfatovich Maganov (25 September 1954 – 1 September 2022) was a

Russian oligarch Russian oligarchs () are business oligarchs of the former Soviet republics who rapidly accumulated wealth in the 1990s via the Russian privatisation that followed the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The failing Soviet state left the ownership ...

who was the chairman of the national oil company Lukoil.

Early life and education

Maganov was born in

Almetyevsk Almetyevsk (; ; ) is a city in Tatarstan, Russia, located on the left bank of the Zay River (Kama's tributary) southeast of Kazan. Population: 77,000 (1969); 49,000 (1959). History Almetyevsk is one of the youngest cities in the republic. Lo ...

Tatar ASSR The Tatar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as Tatar ASSR or TASSR, was an autonomous republic of the Russian SFSR. The resolution for its creation was signed on 27 May 1920 and the republic was proclaimed on 25 June 1920. Kazan ...

, in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

(now

Tatarstan Tatarstan, officially the Republic of Tatarstan, sometimes also called Tataria, is a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia located in Eastern Europe. It is a part of the Volga Federal District; and its capital city, capital and largest city i ...

, Russia) on 25 September 1954. He graduated from the Moscow State University of Oil and Gas in 1977. His father Ulfat Maganov was the senior engineer of the Almetyevsk field and geophysical office of the Tatneftegeofizika trust, and from 1978 to 1998 he headed the Almetyevsk department of geophysical works. His younger brother Nail is a businessman and politician who is the head of the Russian oil producer

Tatneft Tatneft (; traded as: (ordinary shares), (preferred shares), (ADRs)) is a Russian vertically integrated oil and gas company with headquarters in the city of Almetyevsk, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia, Russian Federation. It is the fifth larges ...

Career

Ravil Maganov joined Lukoil shortly after the company was founded in November 1991. He was a close associate of one Lukoil's founders Vagit Alekperov. According to the company, it was he who imagined and proposed the name Lukoil. He held several management positions (vice president of oil production in 1994, first executive vice president of the company in 2006) and oversaw Lukoil's oil production, refining and exploration. He regularly participated in meetings at the Russian Energy Ministry together with other oil companies ahead of OPEC+ meetings. In 2019, he received the

Order of Alexander Nevsky The Order of Alexander Nevsky () is an Order (distinction), order of merit of the Russia, Russian Federation named in honour of saint Alexander Nevsky (1220–1263) and bestowed to civil servants for twenty years or more of highly meritorious ser ...

from Russian President

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

. He was appointed chairman of the board of directors in 2020.

Political views

Shortly after the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

started, Lukoil's board of directors, headed by Maganov, issued a statement calling for a quick end to the conflict, describing it as a "tragedy" and expressed sympathy to its victims.

Death

On 1 September 2022, Maganov allegedly "died after falling from a sixth-floor window at the Moscow Central Clinical Hospital". He had reportedly been hospitalized due to a heart attack. Lukoil acknowledged his death in a statement, saying Maganov "passed away following a severe illness". Some media have hypothesized a connection with other 2022 Russian businessmen mystery deaths. Russian state news agency

TASS The Russian News Agency TASS, or simply TASS, is a Russian state-owned news agency founded in 1904. It is the largest Russian news agency and one of the largest news agencies worldwide. TASS is registered as a Federal State Unitary Enterpri ...

reported the death as a suicide and claimed that he had been taking

antidepressants Antidepressants are a class of medications used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, chronic pain, and addiction. Common side effects of antidepressants include dry mouth, weight gain, dizziness, headaches, akathisia, sexu ...

. Two people who knew Maganov well believe that it is unlikely that he committed suicide. Russian news site Baza, which has close ties with the police, suggested that Maganov may have fallen from a balcony while smoking. It also claimed that CCTV footage was not available because cameras had been "turned off for repairs". President

had visited the hospital to pay respects to

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

on the day of Maganov's death.

Notes

References