Trump’s 15 billionaire fossil fuel friends have got $2.5bn richer ALREADY this YEAR

A new report has revealed the total wealth accumulation of US fossil fuel billionaires increased by 15% since the spring before the 2024 US presidential election (April  2024) to Donald Trump’s inauguration (January 20 2025).

Published by the Climate Accountability Research Project (CARP), the report is the first in a new research series tracking the ‘return on investment’ for the fossil fuel billionaires linked to Trump.

Donald Trump: emboldening the oilygarch wealth surge

‘Pipeline to Power: Trump and the Oil-garch Wealth Surge’ demonstrates how political donations, campaigning, and cabinet appointments have aided this wealth accumulation. CARP has analysed and evaluated data trends from Forbes Real-Time Billionaire List, whose figures are updated every five minutes based on the continuously fluctuating stock market. The data for this report is accurate as of January 14, 2025.

CARP is releasing monthly updates on the wealth of Donald Trump’s network of fossil fuel billionaires. The current report can be viewed here. The next reports will be published on 15 February, March, and April, and will also cite additional sources from Bloomberg and WealthX.

Key findings from the first ‘Pipeline to Power’ report:

• Since April 2024, when Trump’s infamous Mar-a-Lago dinner occurred, the total wealth accumulation of Trump’s top 15 fossil fuel billionaires has increased by $40.2 billion. The combined wealth of the top US 15 fossil fuel billionaires grew from $267.6 billion in April to $307.8 billion, an increase of 15.2%.
• In the first two weeks of 2025, the total wealth accumulation of Trump’s top 15 fossil fuel billionaires has increased by an additional $2.42 billion.
• The billionaires that recorded the greatest gains were Richard Kinder (+35.8%), Lyndal Stephens Greth (+23%), and Julia Flesher-Koch and Charles Koch (+15.4%).
• 8 of the 15 fossil fuel billionaires have inherited wealth from stocks in their families’ companies.
• If all of Trump’s appointees are confirmed, Trump’s incoming administration would be the wealthiest in the nation’s history, with a combined net worth upwards of $300 billion.

All in it together

Analysis from Chuck Collins, co-founder of CARP, notes that:

Billionaire wealth expansion

1. 1. Richard Kinder, Chairman and CEO of Kinder Morgan: Pipeline magnate Kinder may be seeing speculative gains based on Donald Trump lifting the moratorium on LNG gas infrastructure and export capacity.
   2. Lyndal Stephens Greth, who chaired Endeavor Energy Resources: The Stephens-Greth family wealth is surging in anticipation of the resumption of “drill baby drill” policies under the Trump administration. Lyndal Stephens Greth is from the family that owned Endeavor Energy Resources, one of the largest private oil producers in the US and owner of more than 500,000 acres of Texas oil country. Greth assumed this leadership role after the death of her father Autry Stephens, who founded the company and died in August 2024. The late Stephens sold Endeavor to Diamondback Energy in September for $26 million in stock and cash.
   3. Julia Flesher-Koch, who serves on the boards of Koch, Inc., and Charles Koch, chairman and CEO of Koch, Inc.: While the Koch family’s wealth is diversified beyond the Koch Industries energy conglomerate, the bulk of the wealth is still tied to the fortunes of the fossil fuel industry.

Future trends

Collins noted:

We anticipate the fossil fuel billionaire wealth growth to continue. Prior to Trump’s election, major oil, gas and coal companies were facing growing regulatory constraints as the US and other governments worked to transition to clean energy systems. The election of Donald Trump, with vigorous backing from fossil fuel industry leaders, has potentially purchased a few more years of windfall profits and gains for the industry “before the party winds down.”

Data anomalies: Harold Hamm, founder of Continental Resources, stands to profit significantly from the Trump win, however, data sources have tracked his wealth as being consistent with no fluctuation at $18.5 bn. The bulk of Hamm’s wealth is tied to an 80% ownership stake in Continental Resources whose stock price has remained steady since October 2024.

Watching Donald Trump and his cronies

Collins said:

Individual fossil fuel billionaires will have a lot to gain from Trump’s aggressive pro-fossil fuel policies and executive actions that will deregulate their industry. Their individual wealth surges are effectively ‘payback’ for their campaign contributions and support. The wealth gains of these billionaires are a reflection of the booming prospects for the oil, gas and coal industry under the pro-fossil fuel policies of the Trump administration. The January Inauguration edition of this report sets a baseline for tracking gains (or losses) the industry will experience over the next year.

Political donations aren’t the only way the climate criminals wage their influence. They also benefit from taxpayer-subsidised charitable gifts.

In October last year, CARP published the report Fossil Fuel Philanthropy: How Taxpayer-Subsidized Charities Promote Climate Change Disinformation and Stall Urgent Action which revealed that, between 2020 and 2022, at least $219 million in taxpayer-subsidised charitable contributions went to organisations that promote climate disinformation. The report was published in conjunction with the Institute for Policy Studies.

The next ‘Pipeline to Power’ report will be published on 15 February, featuring updated data from Donald Trump’s first month into his presidency.

Featutred image via the Canary