Honoring Entrepreneur, Humanitarian Chris Wright as ‘Wildcatter of the Year’

DENVER – Western Energy Alliance will honor Chris Wright of Liberty Energy, Inc., with the Wildcatter of the Year award in recognition of his achievements in community service and business. Wright has demonstrated success as a data-driven, technology-focused energy entrepreneur and dedicated humanitarian who has educated policy and community leaders around the world on the benefits of energy. As the 37th recipient of the Wildcatter award, he will be formally celebrated by leaders in the oil and natural gas industry at the Wildcatter gala on Saturday, November 5th.

“The world today is in the depths of a man-made energy crisis, the impacts of which are felt by the poorest individuals. What sets Chris Wright apart is his unceasing love for people facing these challenges,” said Kathleen Sgamma, president of the Alliance. “Chris has dedicated his life to advocating on their behalf and has spent the past three decades building oil and natural gas companies to provide the resources humanity needs to thrive. He has demonstrated a commitment to meeting people on their own terms, including traveling to small villages around the world, to learn about their needs and hopes for bettering their lives. Inspired by their stories, he’s been a dedicated advocate who has given them a voice before business and government leaders in order to advance policies that will improve their lives. Chris was selected for this award by his peers because he has leveraged tremendous business success into humanitarian action with a truly global reach.”

​In 2010, Wright co-founded Liberty Resources, a Bakken focused E&P, and today serves as executive chairman. In 2011, Wright founded Liberty Energy to provide completion services to the Bakken basin in North Dakota and has since served as chief executive officer (CEO) and chairman of the board. The company has become the second largest fracturing services company in the world, and in 2018 Wright took Liberty through an initial public offering. Under his management, Liberty has become renown as a technology leader. In 2016, Wright and his team debuted the state-of-the-art Quiet Fleet to address elevated noise levels, dust, and truck traffic associated with hydraulic fracturing.

Wright has been a pioneer and recognized leader in driving an environmentally conscious approach to hydraulic fracturing. In 2021, he began publishing an annual Bettering Human Lives report that focuses on the importance of oil and natural gas in the modern world and documents Liberty’s environmental social, and governance (ESG) achievements. The report covers the critical link hydrocarbons play in geopolitics, food, and enabling the modern world.

Prior to Liberty, Wright founded Pinnacle Technologies and served as CEO from 1992 to 2006. Pinnacle created the hydraulic fracture mapping industry and its innovations helped launch commercial shale gas production in the late 1990s. Subsequently he was chairman of Stroud Energy, an early shale gas producer, before its sale to Range Resources in 2006.

Equally impressive is Wright’s contributions to the community. He serves on the board of numerous nonprofits including the Alliance for Choice in Education (ACE) Scholarships in Colorado and Montana, Pacific Research Institute, Property and Environment Research Center, and the Yellowstone Club Community Foundation. He also sits on the Board of Directors for the Federal Reserve Bank, Denver Branch, and is a current member of Western Energy Alliance’s Board of Directors.

He has spoken on energy and the merits of the Shale Revolution to the United Kingdom’s House of Lords as well as with federal and state lawmakers across the United States. He completed an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and graduate work in Electrical Engineering at both the University of California, Berkeley, and MIT.

About the Wildcatter of the Year Award

The title Wildcatter of the Year is reserved only for the most prominent leaders in the western oil and natural gas industry whose entrepreneurial and exploratory spirit have contributed significantly to America’s energy security and the betterment of society. The term “wildcatter” originates from the 1880s when independent speculators ranged across the West in hopes of discovering new or unproven oil reserves. The Wildcatter of the Year is not only a leader in industry, but a role model in the community as well, demonstrating leadership both on and off the oilfield.