Warren Buffett, one of the worldโs richest men and a campaign fundraiser and donor for Hillary Clintonโs presidential run, has made headlines lately for the attacks on rooftop solar energy launched by subsidiaries of his holding company Berkshire Hathaway.
As Ben Jervey explained here on DeSmog, Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway have numerous ties to coal-fired power plants, the utility industry and the coal-by-rail industrial complex.
But Buffettโs tentacles reach far into the oil industry, as well.
Buffett appeared in the news recently for buying a nearly $400 million stake in oil and gas pipeline giant Kinder Morgan. Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railway also carries much of the oil-by-rail now found on train tracks across the United States.
Beyond Kinder Morgan and oil-by-rail, Buffett also has made a big bet on oil in general.
โIn addition to Kinder Morgan, Buffett has increased his stake in oil refiner Phillips 66,โ reported CNN Money. โHe has bought over $1 billion more of the stock just since the start of 2016. Thatโs on top of the $5 billion he had previously invested in the company.โ
Buffett also owns more than $1 billion worth of stock in tar sands giant Suncor.
The fossil fuel industry sees rooftop solarโs ascendancy as a threat to its bottom line, and it appears Buffett โ who butters his financial bread from industry profits โ does too.
Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons
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