Moscow Times 23 October 2012
Rosneft’s acquisition of TNK-BP has reportedly made Viktor Vekselberg Russia’s wealthiest man and gives the state back control of the oil industry that has been largely in private hands since the privatizations of the 1990s.
As the dust settled from the news of the largest oil deal in the country’s history, the biggest individual winners appeared to be the tycoons behind the AAR consortium, who sold their half of TNK-BP for $28 billion.
Vekselberg moved to 40th place worldwide in Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index with an estimated wealth of $18 billion — $700 million ahead of former leader Alisher Usmanov.
Alfa Group founder Mikhail Fridman gained $1.2 billion, while Leonard Blavatnik of Access Industries earned $1.5 billion, according to the index.