The fact that Timchenko and his family own "at least half" of Stroytransneftegaza, was announced by the businessman himself, answering the question of RBC on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the Russian-Chinese Business Council on Wednesday, 8 February.

"My partners are my relatives," he said, answering the question of the correspondent of RBC regarding the owners of Stroytransneftegaz. He noted that "family" has not control, but "at least half" of the contractor.

Timchenko's spokesman Anton Kurevin did not disclose the structure of Stroytransneftegaz owners, saying that the data in the public domain are irrelevant. He said that Volga Group owns 31.5% of the company, but it was previously known.

According to SPARK-Interfax system, the sole owner of Stroytransneftegaz is still the British Alkor Holdings Limited (100%), more than 75% of which, as of January 2017, is owned by Anton Michael Ray.

Timchenko took third place in the Forbes ranking "Kings of public procurement" at the beginning of 2016; the amount of state orders estimated at 161 billion rubles. According to the calculations of Vedomosti, Stroytransneftegaz received several state contracts without competition and, having increased their total amount up to 213.7 billion rubles, became the Gazprom's largest contractor at the end of 2016.

Among oil and gas contractors in terms of revenue Stroytransneftegaz (2015: 188 billion rubles) is on a more modest second place after Stroygazmontazh (2015: 279.5 billion rubles) owned by Arkady Rotenberg. The third major contractor of Gazprom, Stroygazkonsalting, reveals no data for 2015. However, according to Vedomosti, Stroygazkonsalting beats Stroygazmontazh in terms of the price of contracts concluded with the gas monopoly at the end of 2016, when there were two contracts for the construction of two sections of the second branch of the main gas pipelines Ukhta - Torzhok amounting to 20.4 billion and 12.5 billion rubles.

Stroytransneftegaz is involved in ambitious construction projects of Gazprom: the main pipelines of Power of Siberia and Ukhta - Torzhok, LNG terminals in Kaliningrad.

In the first half of 2015, Stroytransneftegaz (which until the fall of 2016 was called Stroytransgaz) received without a tender a contract to build two sections of the gas pipeline Power of Siberia with the total value of 27.6 billion rubles.

In August of 2016, Gazprom signed another contract with Stroytransneftegazom on the construction of Power of Siberia pipeline with the length of 255 km, located between the compressor stations Saldykelskaya and Olekminsk. The contract value amounted to 72.3 billion rubles.

In January 2017, Stroytransneftegaz got straight to the construction of LNG terminal in Kaliningrad in the amount of 21.26 billion rubles.

In October 2016 the company changed its address and tax jurisdiction from Moscow to St. Petersburg at the renaming of Stroytransgaz to Stroytransneftegaz. During the re-registration office in Moscow became a branch of the central office in St. Petersburg.

The profit of Stroytransneftegaza in 2015 amounted to 10.5 billion rubles, the revenues to 188.3 billion rubles, as follows from the statements of the company, published in SPARK-Interfax system.

Road to Government Contracts

Gazprom has sold its stake in Stroytransgaz in 2006. As a result, the company lost a large part of the contracts. As Kommersant wrote with reference to its sources, in February-March 2008, about 98% of shares of Stroytransgaz were consolidated by Gazprombank entities. The sources stated that the future of the company would be shaped by the end of the year.

The founder of Stroytransgaz was the son of Victor Chernomyrdin Vitali. Then, the company's stock was collected by Gazprominvestholding belonging to Alisher Usmanov, later Stroytransgaz was owned by the entities of Gazprombank. At the end of 2008 Timchenko acquired 80% of Stroytransgaz. In July 2012 it became known that the Timchenko's company is negotiating with shareholders of Argus Pipeline Service (July 19, 2012 renamed to JSC Stroytransgaz) about a possible merger of assets in the oil and gas and pipeline construction. Then they talked about buying 30% stake in the company.

Preparation for the deal took about a year. Only in November 2013, Stroytransgaz Group bought 50% of ZAO Stroytransgaz from its American owner Michael Ray, who owned it through the British Alkor Holdings Limited. Then Gennady Timchenko owned 63% in Stroytransgaz Group, Gazprombank - 19.99%, Mikhail Kenin - 5.7%, Maxim Vorobiev - 11.3%. Later the shares of Stroytransgaz were transferred directly to the shareholders of ST. Timchenko through Volga Group received 31.5% of the company, Gazprombank - 10%.

Following the acquisition of Stroytransgaz, Timchenko got access to the contracts of Gazpom; in particular in 2015-2016 major contracts for the construction of gas pipeline Power of Siberia.

Revenues of "Stroytransgaz started to grow in 2013, and in 2014 almost doubled the pace: in 2011-2012, it was 20-23 billion rubles, in 2013: 58 billion rubles, then in 2014: 103 bln rubles, and in 2015: 188 billion rubles.

According to SPARK-Interfax, in 2011-2014 Timchenko's father-in-law Gleb Frank was a member of the board of directors of OJSC Stroytransgaz. In 2014 Timchenko sold Gleb Frank his stake in the company "Russian Sea". Timchenko's daughter Ksenia Frank as of November 2016, as reported by "Novaya Gazeta", with reference to the materials of one of the insurer's customers was a SOGAZ shareholder with a share of 12.5% in the company "Kordeks". His share in SOGAZ Timchenko, under the US sanctions after the annexation of Crimea to Russia, sold in 2014.