Richard A. Jackson
Summary
Richard A. Jackson is Occidental Petroleum’s President, Chief Executive Officer and Director, having become CEO on June 1, 2026, after more than two decades in operating and technical roles at Oxy.
Biography
Jackson joined Occidental in 2003 through the company’s Middle East operations and has held a range of technical, commercial and leadership positions. His prior roles included Vice President of Drilling Americas, Vice President of Investor Relations, General Manager of the Permian Delaware Basin and Enhanced Oil Recovery, and President of U.S. Onshore Oil and Gas. He became Senior Vice President and President of U.S. Onshore Resources and Carbon Management, Operations, in 2020. In October 2025, Jackson became Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, overseeing global oil and gas operations, low-carbon integrated technologies, midstream and marketing, and health, safety and environmental functions. He was selected to succeed Vicki Hollub as CEO and joined Occidental’s board at the same time. Jackson holds a bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering from Texas A&M University and has participated in industry groups including the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative and the American Petroleum Institute’s Upstream Committee.
Notable achievements
- Led Oxy’s U.S. onshore resources and carbon-management operations from 2020 to 2025.
- Helped oversee operational efforts focused on well performance, organic development and cost efficiency.
- Led Oxy Low Carbon Ventures from its inception, including work on emissions measurement, carbon utilization, sequestration, direct-air capture and lithium extraction.
- Expanded his responsibilities to global operations as chief operating officer in October 2025.
- Advanced through a broad set of technical, operating and commercial roles before becoming CEO.
Problem areas / controversies
- His tenure as CEO began on June 1, 2026, so there is limited public operating history to evaluate him specifically as chief executive.
- He inherits the execution challenge of managing Occidental’s debt and integration obligations following the CrownRock acquisition.
- The company’s carbon-management and direct-air-capture initiatives remain capital-intensive projects whose commercial returns are still developing.
- No major personal controversy was identified in the public sources reviewed.