Scott D. Sheffield | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1952or1953(age 71–72) [1] |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Title | President & CEO, Pioneer Natural Resources |
| Term | August 1997 - December 2016 February 2019 - December 2023 |
| Successor | Timothy Dove Richard Dealy |
| Board member of | The Williams Company, Inc. |
| Spouse | Kimberly Sheffield |
| Children | 5, including Bryan Sheffield |
Scott Douglas Sheffield (born 1952) [2] is an American businessman in the oil and gas industry. He is best known as the founder and former chief executive officer (CEO) of Pioneer Natural Resources.
Sheffield was born in 1952. [2] He spent his high school years in Tehran, Iran, where his father worked as a petroleum executive. [2] Sheffield studied pre-law, later shifting to Petroleum Engineering at the University of Texas. [1] [2] He graduated in 1975. [2]
After graduation, Sheffield began his career as a production and reservoir engineer for Amoco Production Co. [3] He subsequently joined Parker & Parsley as a petroleum engineer in 1979 and was promoted to vice president-engineering in September 1981. In April 1985, he was elected president and director, and on January 19, 1989, he became chairman of the board and CEO. [3]
In August 1997, Pioneer Natural Resources was established through the merger of Parker & Parsley Petroleum Company and MESA Inc, with Sheffield becoming the company's first CEO. [4] [1] He oversaw the company into becoming one of the biggest crude producer in Texas. [5]
Between 2010 and 2014, Sheffield helped Pioneer Natural Resources in raising billions of dollars from investors in India, China, and Wall Street. [2] This capital was used to enhance modern drilling and fracking techniques on Pioneer's Permian Basin land. As a result, the company's oil production more than doubled, reaching approximately 90,000 barrels per day, during a period when U.S. oil production increased by 60% to 8.8 million barrels per day. [2]
In 2015, Scott Sheffield publicly advocated for lifting the U.S. crude export ban during the significant oil price crash that occurred the following year. [2]
At the end of 2016, Timothy Dove replaced Sheffield as CEO. [6] [1] He remained on the board as executive chairman through 2017, and in 2018 moved to non-executive chairman until returning as CEO in 2019. [3]
In February 2019, Sheffield returned to Pioneer as president & CEO upon the retirement of Timothy Dove. [7] Upon his return, he implemented new return of capital framework for the exploration and production industry; reducing capital spending, scaling back drilling plans, and increasing returns to investors through dividends and share buyback schemes. [5] During his tenure, Pioneer acquired Permian producers Parsley Energy—founded by Sheffield’s son, Bryan—and Double Point Energy in 2021, making Pioneer one of the largest oil producers in Texas. [5] Later in 2021, Sheffield stepped down as president but continued as CEO until 2023. [8]
Sheffield retired the end of 2023 with Richard Dealy succeeding him. [5] From January 2024, he remained on Pioneer's board of directors and as special advisor to the CEO until the merger of Pioneer and ExxonMobil in May. [9]
Sheffield is on the advisory board of L1 Energy and the board of directors of The Williams Company, Inc. [10] [11]
Since 2020, Sheffield has ramped up his political contributions to Republican campaigns. [12]
During the COVID pandemic, Sheffield petitioned the Texas Railroad Commission to curtail oil production in order to raise oil prices. [12]
In May 2024, during its antitrust review of ExxonMobil's acquisition of Pioneer Natural Resources, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) alleged that Scott Sheffield had illegally colluded with OPEC and OPEC+, a related cartel of oil-producing countries, to raise oil prices at the expense of U.S. households and businesses. [13] The FTC's complaint cited a quote from Sheffield acknowledging his tactics. [13] Pioneer Natural Resources countered that the FTC misunderstood Sheffield's actions. [9] The FTC reiterated the allegations, citing Sheffield's communications urging production limits. [14] Consequently, the FTC approved the $60 billion merger between Exxon and Pioneer Natural Resources in May 2024 but imposed a settlement condition that barred Scott Sheffield from joining Exxon's board after the merger. [14]
According to a report by Politico, Sheffield claimed the FTC leaked information about referring the allegations to the Justice Department. [15] His legal team filed paperwork demanding the FTC drop the complaint and rescind the order barring him from Exxon's board. [14]
Sheffield is married to Kimberly, they have five children, and live in Southlake, Texas. [16] The couple also own a property in Santa Fe, New Mexico area. [17]