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.
Early life
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
Souki worked as a banker on Wall Street.[2] He also worked as a restaurateur.
Souki served as the chief executive officer of Cheniere Energy until December 2015.[3] He earned US$142 million in 2013,[4] making him the highest-paid CEO in the United States that year.[5] 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.[3] 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
- Gregory Zuckerman. The Export King Foreign Affairs, November 8, 2013, retrieved April 29, 2016^
- David Sheppard. Cheniere Energy chief pushes for a global spot market in LNG Financial Times, September 3, 2015, retrieved April 29, 2016^
- Gregory Meyer. Charif Souki plans to compete with his old company Financial Times, February 25, 2016, retrieved April 29, 2016^
- Christopher Helman. Why Cheniere Energy's Souki Is Worth His $142 Million A Year Forbes, April 29, 2014, retrieved April 29, 2016^
- David Benoit, Ryan Dezember. Cheniere Board Votes to Replace CEO Charif Souki The Wall Street Journal, December 13, 2015, retrieved April 29, 2016^
- Abigail Stevenson. Charif Souki: Carl Icahn behind my Cheniere departure CNBC, April 26, 2016, retrieved April 29, 2016^