Andrei Badalov, vice president of Russia’s state-owned pipeline monopoly Transneft, has died after apparently falling from a window at his home in Rublyovka, the heavily guarded suburb west of Moscow where many members of the country’s elite reside.
His body was found outside a residential building along the Rublyovo-Uspenskoye highway, according to the state-run news agency TASS, which cited an unnamed law enforcement source. “The preliminary cause of death is suicide,” the source told TASS, adding that an initial investigation was underway.
Transneft confirmed Badalov’s death on Friday but did not comment on the circumstances. In a brief statement, the company noted that his tenure came during a “difficult and stressful period,” referring to Western sanctions imposed on Russia following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Badalov, 62, had served as vice president since July 2021, overseeing the company’s digital transformation. Though not a publicly visible figure, he held a critical role in the technological infrastructure of Russia’s energy network and remained largely out of the spotlight during wartime.
His death adds to a growing list of sudden — and in many cases murky — fatalities within Russia’s energy industry. In 2022 alone, at least four senior officials linked to the gas giant Gazprom died in circumstances that remain unclear. Other cases involved high-level executives from Novatek, Russia’s largest private natural gas producer, and Lukoil, one of the country’s biggest oil companies.
Unlike previous incidents, which occurred in hotels, yachts, or secure apartments, Badalov’s death unfolded in Rublyovka, a symbol of post-Soviet power and wealth. The wooded enclave, nestled between Moscow’s outer ring road and the forest, is known for its luxury mansions, private security, and near-total separation from the rest of Russian society.
