Charif Souki (born 1953) is an American businessman. He is the co-founder and former CEO of Cheniere Energy, an oil and gas company which specialized in liquefied natural gas. He was the highest-paid chief executive officer in the United States in 2013.

Charif Souki
Born1953
OccupationBusinessman
Known forDevelopment of the US LNG industry
ParentSamyr Souki

Early life

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Charif Souki was born in 1953 in Cairo, Egypt.[1] His father, Samyr Souki, was a member of the Greek Orthodox Church.[1] Souki moved to Beirut, Lebanon in 1957.[1]

Career

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Souki worked as a banker on Wall Street.[2] He also worked as a restaurateur.[3]

Souki served as the chief executive officer of Cheniere Energy until December 2015.[4] He earned US$142 million in 2013,[5] making him the highest-paid CEO in the United States that year.[3] Souki claims he stepped down as CEO after a disagreement with board member Carl Icahn.[6]

Souki is the co-founder of Tellurian Investments with Martin Houston.[4] Tellurian ousted its chairman and co-founder, Charif Souki, late 2023 after auditors raised doubts about the company's ability to cover future expenses.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Zuckerman, Gregory (November 8, 2013). "The Export King". Foreign Affairs. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
  2. ^ Sheppard, David (September 3, 2015). "Cheniere Energy chief pushes for a global spot market in LNG". Financial Times. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
  3. ^ a b Benoit, David; Dezember, Ryan (December 13, 2015). "Cheniere Board Votes to Replace CEO Charif Souki". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
  4. ^ a b Meyer, Gregory (February 25, 2016). "Charif Souki plans to compete with his old company". Financial Times. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
  5. ^ Helman, Christopher (April 29, 2014). "Why Cheniere Energy's Souki Is Worth His $142 Million A Year". Forbes. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
  6. ^ Stevenson, Abigail (April 26, 2016). "Charif Souki: Carl Icahn behind my Cheniere departure". CNBC. Retrieved April 29, 2016.