RussiaFounded it
Leonid Mikhelson
Leonid Mikhelson founded and runs Novatek, Russia's largest non-state natural gas producer, and chairs the petrochemical group SIBUR; his fortune is his stakes in the two companies.
- Forbes estimate
- $28.3B
- Forbes, 9 Oct 2026
- Forbes rank
- No. 81
- 9 Oct 2026
- Stake in SIBUR
- 30.6%
- Net worth, Bloomberg
- $23.2B
- Bloomberg, 17 Oct 2026
- Born
- 11 Aug 1955
- Kaspiysk, Dagestan, Russia (then the Soviet Union)
- Education
- Not stated
- Civil construction engineering, Kuibyshev Institute of Civil Engineering (1977)
- Giving Pledge
- Not a signer
Where the fortune sits
Novatek and SIBUR stock
NOVATEK
natural gas and LNG, founded 1994
Held directly and through Optima and Levit; includes a 2.3% stake owned by his daughter Victoria, which Bloomberg credits to him
NOVATEK disclosure of 21 March 2022, as read by Bloomberg, 21 Mar 2022
Chairman of the management board and board member
SIBUR
petrochemicals, founded 1995
Forbes says 'just over 30%' after he raised it to 48% in 2017 and later sold down
Bloomberg Billionaires Index, 17 Oct 2026
Chairman of the board of directors
Other holdings
Contemporary art collection and GES-2
Forbes says he spent more than $470 million turning a Moscow power plant into the GES-2 art space, opened in 2021
Where Leonid stands among 73
Everyone on the site, grouped by their answer. Leonid Mikhelson is outlined.
How the fortune started
Founded it
Founded it 42
Inherited and grew it 12
Built it up 8
Inherited it 6
Through marriage 5
Industry
Oil, gas and chemicals
Oil, gas and chemicals 2
Technology 24
Finance 10
Several industries 9
Metals and mining 6
Retail 4
Fashion and beauty 4
Media 3
Food and drink 3
Shipping 3
Crypto 2
Healthcare 1
Casinos and resorts 1
Property and sports 1
Giving Pledge
Not a signer
Not a signer 61
Signed 11
Not stated 1
Education
Not stated
Not stated 11
Bachelor's degree 27
Graduate degree 24
Left university without a degree 6
No university 5
Role today
Runs the company
Runs the company 32
Chair, board or owner 25
Founder, no executive role 8
No role 4
Retired 4
The person
- Born
- 11 Aug 1955Kaspiysk, Dagestan, Russia (then the Soviet Union)
- Citizenship
- Russia
- Lives in
- Moscow, Russia
- Education
- Not statedCivil construction engineering, Kuibyshev Institute of Civil Engineering (1977)
- Parents
- His father Viktor Mikhelson headed the Kuibyshevtruboprovodstroy trust, which Forbes called the largest pipeline-construction trust in the USSR
What they give
- Giving Pledge
- Not a signer
- Foundation
- V-A-C Foundation (Victoria - the Art of Being Contemporary)Founded by him in Moscow in 2009, named after his daughter
- Lifetime giving
- Not stated
Role and record
- Role now
- Runs the companyChairman of NOVATEK's management board; chairman of SIBUR's board
- Successor
- Not stated
- Public office
- None found
- Legal record
- None found
