BardOfEarthRESISTS · @BardOfEarth
8th Mar 2018 from TwitLonger
Old Wikipedia Article Koch CURRENT version CENSORED.
Koch Industries
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Koch industries)
Koch Industries
Koch_Industries_logo.png
Type
Private
Industry
Conglomerate
Founded
1940
Headquarters
Wichita, Kansas, USA
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Charles G. Koch (Chairman, CEO, & 42% owner)
David H. Koch (Executive VP, & 42% owner)
Products
Petroleum
Chemicals
Energy
Asphalt
Natural gas
Plastics
Fibers
Minerals
Fertilizers
Ranching
Pulp and paper
Finance
Commodities trading[1]
Revenue
11px-Increase2.svg.pngUS$100 billion (2009)[citation needed]
Employees
80,000 (2009)[1]
Website
Kochind.com
Koch Industries, Inc. /ˈkoʊk/) is an American private energy conglomerate based in Wichita, Kansas, with subsidiaries involved in manufacturing, trading and investments. Koch also owns Invista, Georgia-Pacific, Flint Hills Resources, Koch Pipeline, Koch Fertilizer, Koch Minerals and Matador Cattle Company.
Koch companies are involved in core industries such as the manufacturing, refining and distribution[1] of petroleum, chemicals, energy, fiber, intermediates and polymers, minerals, fertilizers, pulp and paper, chemical technology equipment, ranching,[2] finance, commodities trading, as well as other ventures and investments.
In 2008, Forbes called it the second largest privately held company in the United States (after Cargill) with an annual revenue of about $98 billion,[3][4][5] down from the largest in 2006. If Koch Industries were a public company in 2007, it would rank about 16 in the Fortune 500.[6]
Fred C. Koch, for whom Koch Industries, Inc. is named, co-founded the company in 1940 and developed an innovative crude oil refining process.[7] His sons, Charles G. Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer, and David H. Koch, executive vice president, are principal owners of the company after they bought out their brothers, Frederick and William, for $1.1 billion in 1983.[8] Charles and David H. Koch each own 42% of Koch Industries, and Charles has stated that the company will publicly offer shares "literally over my dead body".[3]
Contents [hide]
1 History
1.1 Predecessor companies
1.2 Koch Industries
2 Subsidiaries
3 Environmental and safety record
3.1 Environmental designations
3.2 Pipeline accidents
3.3 Pollution and resource fines
4 Political activity
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
[edit]
History
[edit]
Predecessor companies
In 1925, Fred C. Koch joined an MIT classmate Lewis E. Winkler at an engineering firm in Wichita, Kansas, which was renamed the Winkler-Koch Engineering Company. In 1927 they developed a more efficient thermal cracking process for turning crude oil into gasoline. This process threatened the competitive advantage of established oil companies, which sued for patent infringement. Temporarily forced out of business in the United States, they turned to other markets, including the Soviet Union, where Winkler-Koch built 15 cracking units between 1929 and 1932. During this time, Koch came to despise communism and Josef Stalin's regime.[9][10] In his 1960 book, A Business Man Looks at Communism, Koch wrote that he found the USSR to be "a land of hunger, misery, and terror."[11] According to Charles G. Koch, "Virtually every engineer he worked with [there] was purged."[10]
In 1940, Koch joined new partners to create a new firm, the Wood River Oil and Refining Company, which is today known as Koch Industries. In 1946 the firm acquired the Rock Island refinery and crude oil gathering system near Duncan, Oklahoma. Wood River was later renamed the Rock Island Oil & Refining Company.[12] Charles G. Koch joined Rock Island in 1961, having started his career at the management consulting firm Arthur D. Little. He became president in 1966 and chairman at age 32, upon his father's death the following year.[7][13]
[edit]
Koch Industries
The company was renamed Koch Industries in honor of Fred Koch, the year after his death. At that time, it was primarily an engineering firm with part interest in a Minnesota refinery, a crude oil-gathering system in Oklahoma,[10] and some cattle ranches.[14] In 1968, Charles approached Union Oil of California about buying their interest in Great Northern Oil Company and its Pine Bend Refinery but the discussions quickly stalled after Union asked for a large premium.[9] In 1969, Union Oil began trying to market their interest in Great Northern by telling potential buyers that Koch's controlling interest could be thwarted by currying favor with another owner, J. Howard Marshall II. When Marshall discovered this he threw his lot in with Koch, they together acquired a majority interest in the company and ultimately bought Union's interest.[12] Ownership of Pine Bend refinery led to several new businesses and capabilities, including chemicals, fibers, polymers, asphalt and other commodities such as petroleum coke and sulfur. These were followed by global commodity trading, gas liquids processing, real estate, pulp and paper, risk management and finance.[9]
In 1970, Charles was joined at the family firm by his brother David H. Koch. Having started as a technical services manager, David became president of Koch Engineering in 1979.[9]
[edit]
Subsidiaries
Among Koch Industries’ better known subsidiaries across various industries[15] are:
Georgia-Pacific paper and pulp company, maker of Brawny paper towels, Angel Soft toilet paper, Mardi Gras napkins and towels and Quilted Northern toilet paper.
Invista, a polymer and fibers company that makes Stainmaster carpet, and Lycra fiber, among other products.
Koch Pipeline Company LP, that owns and operates 4,000 miles of pipeline used to transport oil, natural gas liquids and chemicals.
Flint Hill Resources LP, that operates oil refineries in six states.
Koch Fertilizer, LLC, owns or has interests in fertilizer plants the United States, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, and Italy, among others.[16][17] In October 2010, a plant in Venezuela was nationalized by the government.[18]
[edit]
Environmental and safety record
Koch Industries' subsidiaries are regulated by many local, state and federal agencies around the globe.
[edit]
Environmental designations
In 2005, Koch's Flint Hills Resources refinery was recognized by the EPA's Clean Air Awards program for reducing air emissions by 50 percent while expanding operations.[19] Koch Industries' headquarters in Wichita has been certified for meeting the Energy Star standards for superior energy efficiency and environmental protection. As of 2010 it is the only Wichita office building to be so recognized.[20][21] A Tulsa, Oklahoma site of the Koch-owned John Zink Company site was part of the EPA's National Environmental Performance Track program from 2003 until 2009 when the program was suspended.[22][23]
Koch's Matador Ranch in Texas earned the Lone Star Land Steward award for outstanding natural resource management in 2010.[24] The Montana ranch has earned several environmental stewardship awards, including the EPA Regional Administrator's award.[25]
In 2010, Koch Industries was ranked 10th on the list of top US corporate air polluters, the “Toxic 100 Air Polluters,” by the Political Economic Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.[26]
[edit]
Pipeline accidents
Koch's Sterling butane pipeline had a leak in Lively, Texas, on August 24, 1996. Two teenagers on the way to report the leak drove into the unseen butane cloud, and were killed when the gas exploded and burned. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded that severe external pipeline corrosion was the cause of the failure, and recommended to Koch to improve corrosion evaluation procedures. Although Koch distributed pamphlets about safety around the pipelines, they failed to maintain an up-to-date mailing list. Only 5 out of 45 residences in the area of the accident had received pamphlets. The families of the dead had not.[27][28]
[edit]
Pollution and resource fines
In March 1999, Koch Petroleum Group, a Koch Industries subsidiary, plead guilty to charges that it had negligently dumped hundreds of thousands of gallons of aviation fuel into wetlands near the Mississippi River from its refinery in Rosemount, Minnesota, and that it had also illegally dumped a million gallons of high-ammonia wastewater onto the ground and into the Mississippi River. Koch Petroleum paid the Dakota County Park System a $6 million fine and $2 million in remediation costs, and was ordered to serve three years of probation.[29]
In 1999, a federal jury found that Koch Industries had stolen oil from government and American Indian lands, had lied about its purchases more than 24,000 times, and was fined $553,504.[30]
In January 2000, Koch Industries subsidiary, Koch Pipeline, agreed to a $35 million settlement with the U.S. Justice Department and the State of Texas. This settlement, including a $30 million civil fine, was incurred for the firm's three hundred oil spills in Texas and five other states going back to 1990.[31][32][33] The spills resulted in more than three million gallons of crude oil leaking into ponds, lakes, streams and coastal waters.[34]
In 2001, the company reached two settlements with the government. In April, the company reached a $20 million settlement in exchange for admitting to covering up environmental violations at its refinery in Corpus Christi, Texas.[35][36] That May, Koch Industries paid $25 million to the federal government to settle a federal lawsuit that found the company had improperly taken more oil than it had paid for from federal and Indian land.[37][38]
In June 2003, the US Commerce Department fined Koch Industries subsidiary Flint Hill Resources a $200,000 civil penalty. The fine settled charges that the company exported crude petroleum from the US to Canada without proper US government authorization. The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security said from July 1997 to March 1999, Koch Petroleum (later called Flint Hill Resources) committed 40 violations of Export Administration Regulations.[39]
In 2006, Koch Industries’ subsidiary Flint Hill Resources was fined nearly $16,000 by the EPA for 10 separate violations of the Clean Air Act at its Alaska oil refinery facilities, and required to spend another $60,000 on safety equipment needed to help prevent future violations.[40]
In 2007, Koch Nitrogen's plant in Enid, Oklahoma, was listed as the third highest company releasing toxic chemicals in Oklahoma, according to the EPA, ranking behind Perma-Fix Environmental Services in Tulsa and Weyerhaeuser Co. in Valliant.[41] The facility produces about 10% of the US national production of anhydrous ammonia, as well as urea and UAN.[42]
In 2009, Koch subsidiary Invista agreed to pay a $1.7 million civil penalty and spend up to $500 million to correct self-reported environmental violations at its facilities in seven states.[43][44] Prior to the settlement, the company had disclosed to the EPA more than 680 violations after auditing 12 facilities acquired from DuPont in 2004.[45][46]
[edit]
Political activity
45px-Unbalanced_scales.svg.png
The neutrality of this section is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (March 2011)
See also: Political activities of the Koch family
Koch Industries is known for its sponsorship of free market foundations and causes.[47]
From 2005 to 2008, Koch industries spent $5.7 million on political campaigns and $37 million on direct lobbying to support fossil fuel industries.[citation needed]
Greenpeace says that between 1997 and 2008 Koch Industries donated nearly $48m to groups which doubt or oppose the theory of anthropogenic global warming.[48] According to Greenpeace, Koch Industries is the major source of funds of "climate denial".[49]
Koch Industries and its subsidiaries spent more than $20 million on lobbying in 2008 and $12.3 million in 2009, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan research group.[50][51]
[edit]
See also
34px-Factory_1b.svg.png
Companies portal
Koch family
Koch Family Foundations
[edit]
References
^ a b c Koch Industries Welcomes 2009 Leadership Kansas Class
^ Koch Industries, Inc - Industry Areas
^ a b Fisher, Daniel (Mar. 13, 2006). "Mr. Big", pp. 24–26. Forbes. Online summary for calendar year 2005 at [1].
^ Forbes - America's Largest Private Companies
^ http://www.forbes.com/2009/10/28/largest-private-companies-business-private-companies-09_land.html Forbes rankings for 2009
^ "The Principled Entrepreneur". The American. July–August 2007. Retrieved 23 February 2010.
^ a b "Summary of Koch Industries History". sec.gov. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 14 November 2005. Retrieved 18 February 2010.
^ The Top 10 Forbes Asia October 19, 2009
^ a b c d Koch, Charles C. (2007). The Science of Success: How Market-Based Management Built the World's Largest Private Company. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-470-13988-2.
^ a b c Daniel Fisher (13 March 2006). "Mr. Big". Forbes.
^ Koch, Fred C. (1960). A Business Man Looks at Communism. Wichita, Kansas.
^ a b J. Howard, Marshall II (1994). Done in Oil: An Autobiography. College Station: Texas A&M University Press. p. 254. ISBN 0890965331.
^ Bruce Upbin; Brandon Copple (14 December 1998). "Creative destruction 101". Forbes.
^ John, Lincoln (1989). Rich Grass and Sweet Water. College Station: Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 0-89096-387-8.
^ Koch Industries website, http://www.kochind.com/IndustryAreas/default.asp, accessed Aug 25 2010,
^ Yasha Levine (1 September 2010). "7 Ways the Koch Bros. Benefit from Corporate Welfare". The New York Observer.
^ "Fertilizers".
^ "Koch Industries says no word on Venezuela takeover". Reuters. 11 October 2010.
^ Jessica Harper (18 November 2009). "Flint Hills is coming out of murky waters". Dakota County Tribune.
^ Koch Industries (17 June 2008). "Koch Industries Inc., Earns Prestigious Energy Star for Efficiencies at Wichita Complex". Press release. Retrieved 2010-05-31.
^ "ENERGY STAR Labeled Offices in Kansas". energystar.gov. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
^ "Process and Pollution Control". kochenergy.com. Koch Industries. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
^ "Performance Track Final Progress Report". epa.gov. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. May 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
^ Texas Parks & Wildlife (6 May 2010). "Lone Star Land Steward Awards Winners Announced". Press release. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
^ Koch Industries (7 June 1999). "EPA Honors Koch Ranch for Environmental Excellence; Award is Ranch's Fourth Major Environmental Honor in 1999". Press release. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
^ Toxic 100 Air Polluters Press reelase, March 31, 2010, http://www.peri.umass.edu/toxic_press/
^ http://www.ntsb.gov/publictn/1998/PAR9802S.pdf
^ http://www.statesman.com/specialreports/content/specialreports/pipelines/23pipelively3.html
^ Environmental Protection Agency (9 March 2000). "Koch Petroleum Group Sentenced for Minnesota Pollution". Press release. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
^ CBS News, Blood and Oil, Nov 27 2000, http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2000/11/27/60II/main252545.shtml
^ http://www.kochpipeline.com/news/printable.asp?id=270
^ http://www.statesman.com/specialreports/content/specialreports/pipelines/23pipegathering.html
^ "Koch Agrees to $35 Million Settlement in Two Environmental Cases". Safety Online. 17 January 2000.
^ Environmental Protection Agency (13 January 2000). "Koch Industries to Pay Record Fine for Oil Spills in Six States". Press release. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
^ "Koch Pleads Guilty to Covering up Environmental Violations at Texas Oil Refinery". justice.gov. U.S. Department of Justice. 9 April 2001. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
^ Don Richards (22 January 2001). "DOJ Reduces Indictments Against Koch Industries". ICIS.
^ CBS (27 November 2000). "Blood and Oil". 60 Minutes.
^ Russell Ray (20 June 2001). "Tribe Likely to Get Piece of Settlement in Osage County, Okla., Oil Squabble". Tulsa World.
^ US Dept of Commerce, Commerce Dept Fines Kansas Firm, June 3, 2003 press release, http://www.bis.doc.gov/news/2003/kansasfirmfined.htm
^ EPA Press Release, EPA Fines Flint Hill Resources Alaska, Dec 13 2006, accessed Aug 25 2010, http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/b0789fb70f8ff03285257029006e3880/6b191200b3ce87e2852572430062f987!OpenDocument
^ "EPA Reports Toxic Releases to Air, Water and Land in Oklahoma in 2007". Environmental Protection Agency. 2009-03-19.
^ Dan Voorhis (2010-12-16). "Fertilizer Helps Koch Grow". Wichita Eagle.
^ U.S. Department of Justice (9 April 2009). "United States Announces Largest Settlement Under Environmental Protection Agency's Audit Policy". Press release. Retrieved 2010-05-31.
^ U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (13 April 2009). "United States Announces Largest Settlement Under Environmental Protection Agency's Audit Policy". Press release. Retrieved 2010-05-31.
^ Levi Wolters (13 April 2009). "Invista to correct EPA violations". Wichita Business Journal.
^ Invista (13 April 2009). "Invista, Agencies File Agreement". Press release. Retrieved 2010-05-31.
^ "Advancing Market-Based Public Policy". kochind.com. Koch Industries. Retrieved 18 February 2010.
^ Vidal, John (30 March 2010). "US oil company donated millions to climate sceptic groups, says Greenpeace". The Guardian (London).
^ "Secretly Funding the Climate Denial Machine". Global Warming. Washington: Greenpeace. 2010-03-29. Retrieved 2010-04-01.
^ "Koch Industries: Client Profile: Summary, 2008". OpenSecrets.org. Retrieved 2011-02-24.
^ "Koch Industries: Client Profile: Summary, 2009". OpenSecrets.org. Retrieved 2011-02-24.
[edit]
External links
Koch Industries
Lobbying and campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
Koch Industries political contributions from Influence Explorer at the Sunlight Foundation
Koch Industries Public Sector political contributions from Influence Explorer at the Sunlight Foundation
[hide]
v · d · e
Koch Industries
Invista
Antron · Comforel · Coolmax · Cordura · Dacron · Lycra · Polarguard · SolarMax · Stainmaster · Tactel · Thermolite
Georgia-Pacific
Angel Soft · Brawny · Colhogar · Delica · Demak'Up · DensArmor Plus · Dixie · KittenSoft · Lotus · Mardi Gras · Moltonel · Okay · Plytanium · Quilted Northern · Soft 'n Gentle · Sparkle · Tenderly · ToughRock · Tutto · Vanity Fair · Zee
Other Units
Koch Chemical Technology Group · Flint Hills Resources · Koch Pipeline Company · Koch Minerals · Koch Fertilizer · Koch Supply & Trading · Matador Cattle Company
Categories: Companies based in Wichita, Kansas | Koch family | Oil companies of the United States | Privately held companies of the United States | Oil pipeline companies | Family businesses
Log in / create account
Article
Discussion
Read
Edit
View history
search-ltr.png
Main page
Contents
Featured content
Current events
Random article
Donate to Wikipedia
Interaction
Help
About Wikipedia
Community portal
Recent changes
Contact Wikipedia
Toolbox
Print/export
Languages
Česky
Deutsch
Español
Français
Italiano
Română
This page was last modified on 8 March 2011 at 08:40.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of Use for details.
Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
Contact us
Privacy policy
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
wikimedia-button.png
poweredby_mediawiki_88x31.png