Nikolai Buinov
Nikolai Buinov | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 19, 1967 Krasnoyarsk, Russia |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, businessman |
| Known for | Co-founder and majority owner of Irkutsk Oil Company |
Nikolai Buinov (born June 19, 1967, in Krasnoyarsk, Russia) is a prominent Russian entrepreneur and businessman, recognized as a co-founder of Irkutsk Oil Company (INK), the largest privately owned oil enterprise in Russia. Since 2011, he has held the position of INK's president and, as of January 2022, serves as its chairman of the board while owning a majority stake of 64%. Forbes valued his fortune at $2.2 billion in 2021.
Career
After completing his studies at St. Petersburg State Transport University in 1990, Buinov started his professional journey in 1993 working at a timber firm. In 1995, together with his father, he launched Bodaibo Energy, a company that provided fuel and supplies to gold mining operations in Siberia's Irkutsk region. Motivated by geologist Boris Sinyavsky, Buinov secured an oil field license in eastern Siberia in 1997. This acquisition paved the way for the creation of Irkutsk Oil Company in 2000 alongside his father and Sinyavsky. By 2017, INK aimed to increase its annual crude oil output to 8.5 million tons.
Beginning in 2017, Buinov diversified into the hospitality sector by funding the transformation of the Wawelberg Bank building into a hotel, a project finalized in 2021.
Wealth
In Forbes' 2024 ranking of global billionaires, Buinov was positioned at number 991.
| Year | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| Net Worth ($ billion) | 2.2 | 2.1 | 2.0 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 1.5 | 1.9 | 3.3 |
Personal life
Buinov lives in Irkutsk, Russia, with his wife and their two children.