(Bloomberg) — Greg Abel, the chairman and chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s energy unit, saw his pay more than double last year to $27.6 million, driven by a cash payout under an incentive plan established six years ago.
The package included $1 million in salary, an $11.5 million bonus and an additional $12 million under the incentive program, according to a regulatory filing Monday from the unit of Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire. Abel's pay in 2013 was $10.7 million. The incentive plan provides an award for meeting profit targets.
Abel's profile has been rising at Berkshire, the holding company run by billionaire CEO Warren Buffett. The energy unit has increasingly become a place for the company to spend its mounting cash hoard on projects and acquisitions that earn reliable returns. On Saturday, Berkshire Vice Chairman Charles Munger singled out Abel, 52, for praise, fueling speculation that he's on a short list to succeed Buffett, 84.
Abel and reinsurance manager Ajit Jain are "proven performers who would probably be under-described as 'world-class,'" Munger wrote in a letter to shareholders. "In some important ways, each is a better business executive than Buffett."
The energy executive stood to make as much as $40 million under the incentive program if profit per share was higher. The plan was initially set to expire in 2013 and was extended last year through 2015.
Profit Increase
Berkshire Hathaway Energy's net income rose 28% last year to $2.1 billion. Abel has been expanding the business through acquisitions and reinvestment. The company operates natural gas pipelines that stretch from the Great Lakes to Texas and electric utilities that keep the lights on in states including Iowa and Nevada. It's also one of the largest producers of wind and solar energy in the U.S.
Buffett's company owns a 90% stake in the Des Moines, Iowa-based energy company and Abel holds about 1%. Walter Scott, a director at the energy unit and the parent company, controls most of the rest with his family.
Chief Financial Officer Patrick Goodman was the energy unit's second-highest paid executive listed in the filing, with a $3.4 million package.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.