Troubled Oil and Gas Firms Rode Government Bailouts to Bigger Profits

Big Oil's Wartime Dividend Bump to Wall Street

Amid high gas prices and war in recent month, the US's largest oil and gas companies have seen profits soar. These 20 companies, who received billions in taxpayer dollars during the coronavirus crisis, are passing newfound profits off to Wall Street in the form of massive dividend payouts. Eighteen of the companies reviewed in the report linked below increased their dividends in the past year. Eleven of the companies increased their payouts by at least 100%, some from zero, since the first quarter of 2021. On top of record quarterly dividend payouts, five of the company's past further profits onto shareholders in the form of variable dividends.

US Financial Institution Holders of Russia's 10 Largest O&G Companies

US banks, asset managers, and investment advisors hold billions in shares of Russia's largest O&G companies, quietly funding the expansion of Russian O&G and the countries domination of Eurasian energy markets.

US Oil and Gas Companies Share Repurchases

US O&G companies have continued to prioritize shareholder returns to lure investors through stock buybacks, despite continued dependence on the American taxpayer

Senate Banking Committee O&G Donations

Energy and natural gas donations to members of the Senate Banking Committee as of November 31, 2021.

Oil and Gas Bonds Issued Since the CARES Act

US oil and gas companies sold bonds worth $178 billion since the Federal Reserve’s CARES Act rescue last March, an unprecedented amount of new debt that has reshaped and propped up struggling fossil fuel firms.

Executive Compensation Data

Executive compensation data for fossil fuel companies with CEO Pay Ratios over 100 times larger than the median employee salary.

Fossil Fuel Bonds Purchased through the SMCCF

Over two months after new purchases through the Federal Reserve's Corporate Credit Facilities concluded, energy bonds comprised 9.2% of the SMCCF bond portfolio. As of March 11th, the Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF) holds $469.9 million worth of oil and gas bonds. Explore below the bonds issued by fossil fuel companies that have been purchased by the Federal Reserve.

Main Street Lending Program Loan Recipients

Federal Reserve purchases of loans to oil and gas companies exploded in December, increasing by $1.12 billion and continuing the MSLP's disproportionately favorable support of fossil fuels. Companies rushed to take advantage of the lending program before its sunset at the end of 2020. Nearly 13% of the loans purchased by the Main Street Lending Program were issued to fossl fuels, compared to just 1% for clean energy. As of December 31st, outstanding loans to oil and gas companies totaled $2.22 billion.