Kamran “Mamoni” Aghayev and Alkagesta: an offshore network for smuggling “shadow” Russian oil worth billions and forging documents to evade sanctions

The Adnan Ahmadzada affair shook not only Azerbaijan’s economy but also sent tremors throughout its political sphere.

The consequences of this «oil commotion» in the era of the oil boom will still be felt for many years. But in this high-profile case, another unnoticed figure remained in the shadows on the political stage. This refers to Adnan Ahmadzada’s cousin – Kamran Aghaev, better known among the «oil people» as «Mamonya». The scale of his personality, or rather, Kamran’s complete lack of distinction, does not allow one to call him the grey cardinal of Ahmadzada’s oil affair. However, it is known that Adnan had boundless trust in «Mamonya», transferring all his assets and real estate to him. And in this matter, Adnan undoubtedly made his fatal mistake.

«Mamonya», due to his fantastic greed, turned out to be incredibly cowardly. Because for his own salvation and capital preservation, he rushed into the embrace and became a hostage of Russian intelligence services. He is ready, like other «oil people» from Ahmadzada’s close circle, in the name of preserving his capital, not only to betray his master but also to commit any other meanness.

To understand the significance of Kamran Aghaev’s activities, it is enough to pay attention to one fact: there is not a single photo of Kamran in open access. Journalists managed to get access to only one of the few photos of Kamran Aghaev.

What made Kamran hide from everyone? Why did he so persistently conceal himself, acting behind the scenes?

Kamran «Mamonya» Aghaev

Kamran Aghaev, a UAE resident and owner of the Maltese trading company Alkagesta Ltd, recently found himself not only in the focus of Azerbaijani law enforcement but also in the centre of international attention. His name is increasingly mentioned in the context of schemes for supplying oil circumventing international sanctions from Russia and regions controlled by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar in Libya.

In May this year, the company Oilmar Shipping and Chartering DMCC, registered in the UAE and previously associated with Adnan Ahmadzada’s name, announced the transfer of 100% of its shares to the company’s executive director, Yusif Mamedov. As explained in the press release, the decision was made «due to well-known events» and to protect business reputation.

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However, sources close to Azerbaijani law enforcement claim that Oilmar was part of a broader network informally managed through offshore structures, including Alkagesta Ltd.

According to official data from the British legal entities register, the owner of Alkagesta Ltd is Kamran Firudin oglu Aghaev, born in 1977, and the executive director is Orkhan Rustamov. At the same time, the close family ties of Kamran Aghaev with Ahmadzada explain the possible lack of transparency in the company’s ownership structure and informal connections among its participants.

Alkagesta Ltd declares itself as a global trading group with representatives in 17 countries, specializing in the supply of oil products, biofuels, fertilizers, and agricultural products. Official materials emphasize that management involves former employees of the British international financial conglomerate Barclays and other international structures, which should emphasize the company’s «transparency» and business reliability.

Kamran in the criminal oil scheme

However, in the last two years, a completely different picture has emerged around Alkagesta — the image of a company participating in a complex oil supply scheme of questionable origin. Since the end of 2022, details began to appear in leaked financial and judicial documents that cast doubt on the legality of the operations conducted by Alkagesta.

One of the key themes has been the trade in Libyan oil extracted in Benghazi — a region under the control of the pro-Russian rebel commander - Khalifa Haftar. According to Lloyd’s List and Bloomberg, despite the UN embargo, oil from these fields was entering international markets. The scheme involved vessels linked to Alkagesta, as well as logistics through Maltese terminals.

According to UN Security Council data, such oil was exported bypassing sanctions via three main channels: loading in Benghazi with offshore reloading, direct deliveries with forged certificates, and additional loading with legitimate cargo from other countries. Over 20 months - from January 2023 to August 2024 - 42 tankers completed nearly 200 voyages to the old port of Benghazi with a total deadweight of 1.4 million tons.

And who is Orkhan Rustamov?

Examples of specific operations demonstrate a similar scheme. On November 4, 2022, the vessel MT TONY unloaded almost 2.5 million liters of petrol in the Turkish port of Gebze. The declaration claimed that the fuel was loaded in Malta, the seller was Alkagesta Ltd Malta, the buyer was Alkagesta Ltd Mersin, and the country of origin was Turkmenistan. However, the data contradicted each other: in court documents, OPL (out of port limits) was indicated, and the invoice recipient was not a Turkish but a Maltese entity.

Similar discrepancies were recorded on November 24 and December 10 of that year in analogous voyages by MT ISTRA and a repeat voyage by MT TONY.

Alkagesta’s activity in the Black Sea is particularly noteworthy. According to the Volza database, this entity imported oil products under HSN code 2710 through Yomkostyah Black Sea Terminal, erroneously labeled as a Turkish terminal, even though it is located in Georgia, near Batumi. Documents feature supplies from Kazakh companies — Kyzylorda Refinery and Amangeldinskiy GPZ, but in some cases, experts point to the suspicious origin of the products and the possibility of origin substitution — in particular, Libyan oil was labeled as Kazakh, and forged certificates were issued by an entity in Turkey.

All roads lead to Kamran

In addition, since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, Alkagesta has been repeatedly mentioned as a trader involved in the logistics of Russian oil that went from Russian ports to Turkey. This is evidenced by data from open sources. In particular, a few days before Ahmadzada’s arrest, the media resource Euro Asia News published materials about the tanker Blue Rose (IMO 9335915), which belonged to structures associated with Alkagesta and transported Russian oil from Novorossiysk to the coast of Turkey, circumventing European sanctions.

In August 2025, a joint investigation by the UK and the European Union began regarding the trade of Alkagesta in Libyan and Russian oil. It is reported that the possibility of imposing sanctions against the company is being discussed.

Against this backdrop, Azerbaijani special services’ actions have intensified. The arrest of Adnan Ahmadzada marked the beginning of a large-scale clean-up of old schemes in Azerbaijani oil trading. However, the question remains open: who is Kamran Aghaev really — an independent businessman or a nominal owner of an extensive infrastructure built around Adnan Ahmadzada’s «shadow empire»?

Traces of «Mamonya» everywhere

Current investigation proves: it is through Alkagesta that key logistics in the «grey» oil trading schemes are conducted — be it supplies from eastern Libya, Russian oil, or cargo origin requalification through offshore structures. And here, Aghaev’s figure, who until recently remained in the shadows, comes to the forefront.

According to preliminary information, Kamran Aghaev is currently hiding in Moscow and is under the protection of Russian intelligence services.

It seems that Aghaev’s role in Ahmadzada’s business empire was much more significant than formal titles and registry records suggest. The only question is when this will be officially recognized.