Oleg Deripaska is the businessman most closely associated with Rusal, the company that owns the Aughinish Alumina plant in Co Limerick. Although he formally stepped down from the top leadership role at the group seven years ago, he is still widely seen as an important figure linked to both the company and Russia's wider power structure.
Deripaska built his wealth during the turbulent final years of the Soviet Union, a period that created some of Russia's best-known oligarchs. Over time, he became one of the country's most recognizable and influential business figures, with his name familiar to many Russians.
His continued prominence matters because Rusal is a major industrial player, and ownership of assets such as Aughinish keeps attention on the people behind the company. Even without holding the same formal position as before, Deripaska remains relevant to discussions about Russian industry, corporate control and political influence.
The focus on Deripaska reflects a broader interest in how Russian business leaders rose to power and how much influence they still hold. In Rusal's case, that means continued scrutiny of the founder whose reach extends beyond the boardroom into the country's economic and political life.
