Yuri Konstantinovich Shafranik is a native of  Siberia. He was born on February 27, 1952 in a big village of Karasul (Ishim District of the Tymen Oblast) in a farmer’s family. He is of Russian nationality.

Yuri Shafranik graduated from two faculties of the Tyumen Industrial Institute (at present – the Tyumen’s State Oil and Gas University): in 1974 - as electrical engineer and in 1980 by correspondence he got a diploma of “the Mining Engineer on Technology and Complex Mechanization of Oil and Gas Deposits Development”.

In 2006 he got the degree of Doctor of Economics.

Having started his oil man career as a mechanic at a production site he advanced to the position of the Minister of Fuel and Energy of Russia. During his engineering career Yuri Shafranik always concentrated on organization of production, new working methods, best practices.

Since 1974 he worked on plants of the production association “Nizhnewartovskneftegas” as mechanic, processing engineer, senior engineer, laboratory chief.

In 1980 since the first days of opening of Uryev oil field Yuri Shaftanik worked in NGDU “Uryevneft”. At first as the chief of central engineering and technology service, then as chief engineer, head of NGDU, and with formation of the production association “Langepasneftegas” as general manager (from 1987 to 1990).

Y.Shafranik also worked at the Samotlor oil field, took direct part in opening up and development of Van-Egansk, Lokosovo, Pokamasovo, Potochnoye, Uryev oil fields in Western Siberia.

On April 14 of 1990 having won the alternative ballot with participation of 8 candidates he was elected Chairman of the Tymen Oblast’s Council of People’s Deputies.

On Yuri Shafranik’s initiative the Oblast’s Council approved in December of 1990 the Concept of Tyumen Oblast Development at the core of which was the mechanism of introduction of paid mining. But a legal base for this mechanism was totally absent in the country. Referring to this Yuri Shafranik proposed to the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR to adopt a “Subsoil Law”. During preparation stage of the law’s draft he was a member of the working group and actively worked in it.

The length of the process of preparation and adoption of the law and sharp social problems of his oblast made Yuri Shafranik to look for other ways to solve the problem of paid access to resources. By June of 1991 was worked out and in September of 1991 signed by the President of the Russian Federation Ukaz #122 “About Tyumen Oblast Development” where the strategic directions were determined as follows:

- introduction of charges for access to subsoil resources

- creation of vertically integrated companies;

- market mechanism of forming oil prices etc.

The Ukaz exerted a significant influence on socio-economic development of the oblast and further forming of oil and gas industry.

In September of 1991 Y.K.Shafranik by a presidential decree was appointed Head of Tyumen Oblast Administration. Taking into account a complicated administratively-territorial structure of the oblast Y.Shafranik managed to form the Administrative Council of the Oblast with heads of administrations and territorial councils of Tyumen Oblast, Khanty-Mansiysk and Yamalo-Nenetsk Autonomos Districts becoming members of it. This enabled all three subjects of the Federation to successfully develop themselves without conflicts.

The first organizational meeting of the Union of Oil Producers took place in the city of Tyumen in 1992 with active participation of Y.K.Shafranik.

Since January of 1993 Yuri Shafranik – the Minister of Fuel and Energy of the Russian Federation.

On December 12, 1993 Yuri Shafranik was elected the deputy of the Federation Council from the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous District. He also became a member of the Committee on Economic Reform, Ownership and Proprietary Relations of the Federation Council.

In the years of 1993 – 1995 absolutely new structures for Russian economy – vertically integrated oil companies were formed. The work of forming all structures, working out compositions of new oil companies with the Government of the Russian Federation and heads of the Federation’s subjects, preparation of respective government regulations was directed by Yuri Shafranik in his capacity of the Minister of Fuel and Energy. The main trends of structural transformations were formulated in the Concept of Russian Oil Industry Development prepared by the Ministry of Fuel and Energy according to the Directive of the Government of the Russian Federation.

Yuri Shafranik headed the development of the concept and following it of the Energy Strategy of Russia which set tasks, mechanisms and directions of ensuring the energy security of the country. He was the first to raise and substantiate the problem of energy diplomacy and to relate it to energy security. Together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Yuri Shafranik organized and conducted a number of round table discussions on these problems that resulted in two international consultative meetings: “Russia – Europe: a Strategy of Energy Security” and “Energy Security of the CIS” conducted in 1995 and 1996.

In 1993 Yuri Shafranik set up the Moscow International Oil Club that united presidents of Russian and world oil companies. With his active participation Russia entered into large scale international projects such as the Caspian Pipeline Consortium the board of directors of which he chaired for many years, “Sakhalin-1” and “Sakhalin-2”.

Yuri Shafranik’s persistent work facilitated adoption of the Law “On Production Sharing Agreements” that enabled to start realization of international projects “Sakhalin-1” and “Sakhalin-2”.

In 1993 Yuri Shafranik initiated working out of programs of development and structural reconstruction of oil, coal and electric power industries and also headed creative working groups on each of the industries. This resulted in preparation and introduction to the Government of the Russian Federation of the Program of Closing of Unprofitable Mines and Mines with Dangerous Working Conditions and creation of the Concept of Russian Oil Industry Management.

Yuri Shafranik many times substantiated and consistently maintained the idea of the necessity to create a National Oil company, the core of which should have become GP “Rosneft”. In his view it is reasonable to form in Russia 5-6 big oil companies. But under pressure of different forces acting inside the Government and the Presidential Administration and with participation of influential regional leaders the number of oil companies surpassed a dozen.

Y.Shafranik’s retirement in summer of 1996 in many respects was related to his specific position about the necessity of hardening government regulation of the Fuel-Energy Complex, and opposition to shares-for-loans auctions and high tempos of privatization of the Russian oil complex objects.

From August of 1996 to April of 1997 Yuri Shafranik worked as adviser to Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation.

In May of 1996 he was elected member of the Board of directors of ОАО “Tyumen Oil Company”, and in August became chairman of the Board. It was a period of active preparation to the investment competition on the sale of shares package of OAO “TNK”. As a result in July 1997 a 40% -package of TNK shares was sold for a record for investment competitions sum of US$ 810 Ml. It turned out to be bigger than the sum received for all the investment competitions and shares-for-loans auctions conducted prior to that.

In 1997 Moscow’s mayor Yuri Luzkov proposed to Yuri Shafranik to head the Central Fuel Company, which even despite well-known all-Russian economic and financial problems, managed in a short period of time to occupy its own niche on the regional oil products market. Already by the results of 1998 ОАО “the Central Fuel Company”, according to the magazine “the Expert” estimate, entered into the twenty most effective and profitable companies of Russia.

Due to differences in approaches to the strategy of further development of OAO “CFC” Yuri Shafranik in January 2001 left the company with all his team of managers and eagerly started to participate in the activities of the Interstate Oil company “SoyuzNefteGas”. In August of 2000 he became chairman of its Board of directors and in September of 2001 chairman of the Management board.

Yuri Shafranik is also chairman of the Supreme Mining Council, chairman of the Board of the Union of Oil and Gas Producers of Russia (since 2002), member of the Presidium of the Academy of Mining Sciences, member of the Academy of Technological Sciences and of the International Academy of the Fuel and Energy Complex. He is also chairman of the Committee on Energy Strategy and the Fuel and Energy Complex Development of the Russian Chamber of  Commerce and Industry, president of the Fund “World Politics and Resources”, member of the Board of trustees of the Mikhail Shemyakin Fund.

People who know Yuri Shafranik well stress his persistence in achieving tasks set. He has a broad statesman’s mind, thoroughly follows and analyses not only the situation in oil and gas industry where he is recognized as an extra class expert but also political and economic developments.

Yury Shafranik has a very high working capacity.

His hobbies are mountain skiing, reading and theater.

He was awarded with orders of People’s Friendship (1988) and of Honour (2000), and many medals.

Yuri Shafranik is a laureate of the Government of the Russian Federation Award (1999).

In 2002 the Russian Orthodox Church awarded him with the Order of the Saint Blessed Prince Daniil of II degree.

By the Presidential Ukaz of March 15, 2010 Y.K.Shafranik was awarded the title “the Distinguished Worker of Oil and Gas Industry of the Russian Federation”.