Rodney Ray Lewis, known as Rod Lewis (born 1954), is founder, president, and chief executive officer of

Lewis Energy Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...

, an oil and natural gas drilling company based in Texas, US.

Biography

Lewis was born and raised on a ranch in Laredo in Webb County in

South Texas South Texas is a region of the U.S. state of Texas that lies roughly south of—and includes—San Antonio. The southern and western boundary is the Rio Grande, and to the east it is the Gulf of Mexico. The population of this region is about 4.96 ...

. His father was a pilot in the United States Air Force.Christopher Helman and Jesse Bogan, 'The Crossing', in '' Forbes'' magazine, 08.07.0

He graduated from what is now Texas A&M International University in Laredo with a Bachelor of Arts in criminal justice. He started his career in the oil industry by working for

Stampede Energy A stampede () is a situation in which a group of large animals suddenly start running in the same direction, especially because they are excited or frightened. Non-human species associated with stampede behavior include zebras, cattle, elephant ...

and for the

R.L. Burns Corporation RL, Rl or rl may refer to: In arts and entertainment * Radio Liberty, US broadcaster * '' Rocket League'', a video game Businesses and organizations * Polo Ralph Lauren (NYSE stock ticker symbol) * Réseau Luxembourgeois des Amateurs d'Ondes C ...

. He purchased his first

oil well An oil well is a drillhole boring in Earth that is designed to bring petroleum oil hydrocarbons to the surface. Usually some natural gas is released as associated petroleum gas along with the oil. A well that is designed to produce only gas may ...

for $13,000 in 1982 and launched Lewis Energy the next year. In 1995, he borrowed $5 million from Enron Capital & Trade and repaid the loan in eight months. Alongside drilling in

, he has drilled in Mexico for

Pemex Pemex (a portmanteau of Petróleos Mexicanos, which translates to ''Mexican Petroleum'' in English; ) is the Mexican state-owned petroleum company managed and operated by the Mexican government. It was formed in 1938 by nationalization and expr ...

, and in

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

for Hupecol Caracara and Solana Resources. In 2003, he sold much of his Texas pipelines to Dan Duncan, the CEO of Enterprise Products Partners. He is the first American wildcatter to drill in Mexico since former President

Lázaro Cárdenas Lázaro Cárdenas del Río (; 21 May 1895 – 19 October 1970) was a Mexican army officer and politician who served as president of Mexico from 1934 to 1940. Born in Jiquilpan, Michoacán, to a working-class family, Cárdenas joined the M ...

made it illegal for anyone but the Mexican government to do so. '' Forbes'' magazine called Lewis "the only

gringo ''Gringo'' (, , ) (masculine) (or ''gringa'' (feminine)) is a term in Spanish and Portuguese for a foreigner, usually an English-speaking Anglo-American. There are differences in meaning depending on region and country. In Latin America, it is ge ...

allowed to drill in Mexico." He can collect as much as $350 million annually from Pemex for drilling on 80,000 acres near the border. He does not own the oil or natural gas but is compensated for drilling the land. Lewis owns at least 350,000 acres of the Eagle Ford Shale property. In 2010, British Petroleum began drilling on 80,000 acres of Eagle Ford Shale property that Lewis owns. As of March 2018, he is the 1,756th richest person in the world. He is worth US$1.3 billion. He collects World War II-era planes, and he owns 30, including

Glacier Girl ''Glacier Girl'' is a Lockheed P-38F Lightning, World War II fighter plane, 41-7630, c/n 222-5757, that was restored to flying condition after being buried beneath the Greenland ice sheet for over 50 years. Glacier Girl was part of the Lost Sq ...

, which he bought for $10 million.Christopher Helman and Jesse Bogan, 'A Wildcatter in Love with Warbirds', in ''Forbes'' magazine, 08.13.0

Patrick Danner of ''

San Antonio Express-News The ''San Antonio Express-News'' is a daily newspaper in San Antonio, Texas. It is owned by the Hearst Corporation and has offices in San Antonio and Austin, Texas. The ''Express-News'' is the third largest newspaper in the state of Texas, with ...

'' staff, "Lewis, wife marriage breakup", '' Laredo Morning Times'', June 12, 2013, pp. 1, 10A Since 2012 or 2013 he is the owner of M5, the largest single-masted yacht ever built. Lewis and his wife, the former Kimberly Annette Spicer (born c. 1958), have four adult children. He also owns a ranch in Encinal north of Laredo. Lewis is a survivor of

esophageal cancer Esophageal cancer is cancer arising from the esophagus—the food pipe that runs between the throat and the stomach. Symptoms often include difficulty in swallowing and weight loss. Other symptoms may include pain when swallowing, a hoarse voice ...

but lost his salivary glands in treatment. In March 2013, Mrs. Lewis filed for divorce in the Bexar County Courthouse. There is no mention of a

pre-nuptial agreement A prenuptial agreement, antenuptial agreement, or premarital agreement (commonly referred to as a prenup), is a written contract entered into by a couple prior to marriage or a civil union that enables them to select and control many of the leg ...

, and Texas is a community property state. At least thirteen lawsuits are involved in the Lewis' marital squabbles. Mrs. Lewis is asking that her husband pay her legal fees in the dispute. Rod Lewis stated in an interview that he loved his wife and that he had no intention of divorcing her. Lewis and she later reconciled and continue to attend public events together. The Rod and Kim Lewis Foundation donates grants to charitable organizations. Lewis provided the furnishing of the three-story Lewis Energy Academic Center, which opened in January 2012 on the campus of Laredo Community College. In August 2014, Lewis was named recipient of the annual Angel of Hope Award for his work in providing Christmas gifts to needy children in Webb County. Angel of Hope was originated by the constable's office of Webb County Precinct 1.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Rodney 1954 births Living people American billionaires American businesspeople in the oil industry Businesspeople from Texas Wildcatters Philanthropists from Texas Texas A&M International University alumni People from Laredo, Texas People from San Antonio Ranchers from Texas