Greg Abel facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Greg Abel
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|---|---|
| Born |
Gregory Edward Abel
June 1, 1962 |
| Education | University of Alberta (BComm) |
| Occupation | Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Energy Vice-chairman of Berkshire Hathaway |
| Spouse(s) | Andrea Abel |
| Children | 4 |
Gregory Edward Abel (born June 1, 1962) is a Canadian businessman, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, and vice-chairman of non-insurance operations of Berkshire Hathaway since January 2018. On May 3, 2025, it was announced that he will become the successor to Warren Buffett as the Chief Executive Officer of Berkshire Hathaway.
Early life and education
Gregory Edward Abel was born on June 1, 1962, in Edmonton, Alberta.
During his childhood, Abel did odd jobs like distributing flyers and returning bottles to make money. He also worked as a laborer for a forest products company. He enjoyed hockey and football as a child.
He earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from the University of Alberta in 1984, and is an AICPA certified public accountant.
Career
Abel began his career as a chartered accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers in their San Francisco office. In 1992, he joined CalEnergy, a geothermal electricity producer. In 1999, CalEnergy acquired MidAmerican Energy, adopting its name, and Berkshire Hathaway acquired a controlling interest later that year. Abel became CEO of MidAmerican in 2008, and the company was renamed Berkshire Hathaway Energy in 2014.
In January 2018, Abel was named Berkshire Hathaway's vice chairman for non-insurance operations and appointed to Berkshire's board of directors.
Abel is also vice chairman of Edison Electric Institute, and a director of AEGIS Limited, Kraft Heinz, Nuclear Electric Insurance Limited, the Hockey Canada Foundation, the Mid-Iowa Council Boy Scouts of America, and the American Football Coaches Foundation. He has been on the board of trustees at Duke University and Drake University.
In a May 2021 interview, Warren Buffett confirmed Abel as his future successor as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. Abel's handling of CalEnergy’s take-over of a British utility in the 1990s is credited to mark the start of this transition.
In June 2022, he sold his 1% stake in Berkshire Hathaway Energy for $870 million.
In October 2022, it was announced that Abel purchased 168 shares of Berkshire Class A shares worth approximately $68 million. This equates to an approximate average share purchase price of $404,761.90. Prior to this latest purchase, Abel held five Class A shares, and 2,363 Class B shares, according to previous filings.
On May 3, 2025 Warren Buffett was quoted as stating “The time has arrived where Greg should become the chief executive officer of the company at year end", thus paving the way for Abel to step into Buffett’s shoes as overall CEO of Berkshire Hathaway.
Honors
He received a Horatio Alger award in 2018.
