Sanctioned Russian billionaire Timchenko leaves gas producer Novatek

Moscow, 21 Mar Russian billionaire Gennadi Timchenko, considered by the European Union (EU) as one of the confidants of Russian President Vladimir Putin and sanctioned by the Twenty-Seven, leaves the board of directors of Novatek, the country's largest independent producer of natural gas, according to the company. “Novatek reports that Gennadi Nikolayevich Timchenko left the company's board of directors on March 21, 2022 at his own request,” the company said in a brief statement. In 2014 U.S. The US sanctioned Timchenko (with an estimated wealth of $21.1 billion, according to Forbes) and after the start of the Russian military offensive in Ukraine, the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom included him among the oligarchs to whom they applied restrictive measures. He is considered by the EU as “one of Putin's confidants”, to which he has been joined by a close personal relationship since the 1990s. Timchenko, who is Novatek's second-largest shareholder with 23.49% of the share capital, behind CEO Leonid Mikhelson (24.76%), was not among the candidates for the board of directors to be elected on April 21 at the shareholders' meeting, according to Interfax. The Volga Group, which manages Timchenko's assets in key sectors of the Russian economy, told the same source that the billionaire will continue to be Novatek's shareholder. Recently, Italy confiscated Timchenko's “Lena” yacht, located in the port of Sanremo and with an estimated value of approximately 50 million euros. CHIEF mos/jac