The wealth of 16 UK individuals and families linked to the energy industry has increased by £2.8 billion in a year, according to an analysis of the Sunday Times 2026 Rich List published earlier this month.
Previous analysis of energy industry profits found that firms made £26.2 billion in profit in just the first three months of 2026, on top of more than half a trillion pounds in profits generated since 2020. Oil and gas company bosses have seen their personal stakes in the industry rise as conflict in the Middle East pushes up the prices households pay.
On the Sunday Times Rich List household names with energy interests include Jim Ratcliffe, majority owner of the global petrochemical and energy giant INEOS who appears 9th on the list, and Octopus boss Greg Jackson, who appears 268th on the list and grew his wealth by £65m in a year to half a billion pounds.
But the household names are not the only ones linked to the energy sector:
- Idan Ofer, a major shareholder in Kenon Holdings, is the 4th richest person in the UK, worth £24.481bn. Kenon Holdings’ primary business is OPC Energy, which is the leading private power company in Israel and also operates in the US via its subsidiary CPV.
- Daniel Kretinsky, co-owner of European energy company EPH, is the 24th richest person in the UK, worth £8.185bn. In the UK, EPH owns gas-fired power stations, which help to drive up the cost of electricity, and a gas storage facility. It also has operations across Europe spanning the entire energy market chain from production.
- Carrie and François Perrodo (and family), the owners of oil and gas company Perenco, are the 25th richest people in the UK, worth £8.074bn. In the UK, Perenco operates a range of gas sites, including part of the Dimlington gas terminal. The firm has extensive global operations producing oil and gas in Africa, Asia, Turkey and the Caribbean as well as in North, South and Central America.
- Alex Beard made his wealth as the former head of oil operations at Glencore, which through its trading arm also helps set the prices consumers pay for energy. After leaving in 2019, he is now the co-owner of investment fund Adaptogen Capital. He is now worth £1.93bn, up £939m on 2025, and is the 82nd richest person in the UK.
- Sir Ian Wood (and family) is the founder of the Wood Group, a multinational engineering and consulting company offering specialist engineering, maintenance, and technical support for oil production companies. The company, which played a pivotal role in the boom in the oil industry in Aberdeen, was sold to Dubai-based firm Sidara in 2025. He remains on the Sunday Times Rich List as 85th richest person in the UK, worth £1.876bn.
A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition said:
“The figures tell their own story about who is benefiting in the UK from the energy system – and it certainly isn’t hard up households who are staring yet another huge jump in their energy bills from 1 July.
“The gap between those who profit from the energy system and those who pay for it has rarely been more visible. We can’t go on like this, we need to changes to the energy system and faster roll out of energy efficiency and clean energy to break the link between volatile fossil fuel markets and household bills.”
Methodology
The End Fuel Poverty Coalition’s analysis tallied up the wealth accumulated in 2026 by 16 key individuals with financial interests related to the oil, gas, fuel and energy sectors, compared to their wealth accumulated in 2025. These 16 individuals are:
- Idan Ofer (£20.121bn in 2025 to £24.481bn in 2026)
- Sir Jim Ratcliffe (£17.046bn in 2025 to £15.194bn in 2026)
- Carrie and François Perrodo and family (£9.3bn in 2025 to £8.074bn in 2026)
- Daniel Kretinsky (£7.79bn in 2025 to £8.185bn in 2026)
- Zuber and Mohsin Issa (£6bn in 2025 to £5bn in 2026)
- Sir Ian Wood (£1.914bn in 2025 to £1.876bn in 2026)
- Sir Gerald Ronson and family (£1.242bn in 2025 to £1.552bn in 2026)
- Eugene Shvidler (£1.1bn in 2025 to £1.1bn in 2026)
- Alex Beard (£991m in 2025 to £1.93bn in 2026)
- Helene and Marianne Odfjell and family (£829m in 2025 to £1.14bn in 2026)
- Bhupendra Kansagra and family (£680m in 2025 to £721m in 2026)
- Christopher Moran (£658m in 2025 to £658m to 2026)
- Michael Loughran and family (£530m in 2025 to £770m in 2026)
- Greg Jackson (£435m in 2025 to £500m in 2026)
- Anna Margaret Smedvig, Julia Smedvig Hagland and family (£1.252bn in 2025 to £1.253bn in 2026)
- Stefan Olsson (£1.532bn in 2025 to £1.778bn in 2026)
In 2025, the 16 key individuals were worth a combined £63.19 billion. In 2026, the same 16 individuals were worth a combined £74.212bn – a £2.79bn increase.
The End Fuel Poverty Coalition’s analysis did not account for Laurent Cadji, Warren Stephens or Richard Dick, three individuals related to the oil, gas, fuel, and energy sectors who were new entries or re-entries on the 2026 list.
The analysis did not account for John Fredriksen & family and Mahdi al-Tajir, key individuals related to the oil, gas, fuel, energy and markets sectors who were present on the 2025 Rich List, but were not eligible for inclusion on the 2026 Rich List.