Andrei Badalov, vice president of Russia’s state-owned oil pipeline company Transneft, has died after reportedly falling from a window of his home in the affluent Moscow suburb of Rublyovka. State media confirmed his death on Friday but did not provide details about the circumstances. Transneft noted that Badalov’s work took place during a “difficult and stressful period” shaped by Western sanctions.

According to the state-run TASS news agency, citing an unnamed law enforcement official, Badalov’s body was discovered beneath the window of a residence on Rublyovo-Uspenskoye highway. The preliminary cause of death is being treated as suicide, with an investigation currently underway.

Appointed vice president in July 2021, Badalov had been leading Transneft’s digital transformation efforts. Prior to that, he worked at the Voskhod Research Institute, affiliated with Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development, Communications, and Mass Media. His responsibilities included digital transformation, IT, and automation across production and economic activities.

This incident marks the latest in a series of unexplained deaths among top executives in Russia’s energy sector since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. At least four executives connected to Gazprom died in 2022, along with other figures from Novatek and Lukoil.

Separately, the Ukrainian Security Service recently eliminated Manolis Pilavov, the former head of the occupation administration in Luhansk, who was a key figure behind the so-called “LPR” and was wanted for terrorism and attempting to overthrow the state system.

Sources:

• TASS
• The Moscow Times
• UNN