The story
Founded by Fred Chase Koch in 1940.1
Predecessor companies
In 1925, Fred C. Koch joined MIT classmate Lewis E. Winkler at an engineering firm in Wichita, Kansas, which was renamed the Winkler-Koch Engineering Company. In 1927, they developed a more efficient thermal cracking process for turning crude oil into gasoline. This process, which the company sold to many independent refineries in the United States, threatened the competitive advantage of established oil companies, which sued for patent infringement. Temporarily forced out of business in the United States, they turned to other markets, including the Soviet Union, where Winkler-Koch built 15 cracking units between 1929 and 1932. During this time, Koch came to despise communism and Joseph Stalin's regime. In his 1960 book, A Business Man Looks at Communism, Koch wrote that he found the USSR to be "a land of hunger, misery, and terror". According to Charles Koch, "Virtually every engineer he worked with [there] was purged."
In the 1930s Winkler-Koch built refineries in nine different countries across hundreds of projects. In 1933 when several American companies were doing business in Germany, in a joint venture with William Rhodes Davis, Koch assisted in the design and construction of the third-largest oil refinery in Germany at the time. It was also one of the few refineries capable of refining fuel for airplanes, and was later a strategic bombing target for Allied forces when World War II broke out. The project was stalled for some time as Davis sought approval, which was granted by the Nazi government. The war commenced six years after the refinery was completed. Koch’s business, and the Koch family, supported the American war effort against Adolf Hitler and his government.
In 1940, Koch joined new partners to create the Wood River Oil and Refining Company. In 1946, the firm acquired the Rock Island refinery and crude oil gathering system near Duncan, Oklahoma. Wood River was later renamed the Rock Island Oil & Refining Company. Charles Koch joined Rock Island in 1961, having started his career at the management consulting firm Arthur D. Little. He became president in 1966 and chairman at age 32, upon his father's death the following year.
Koch Industries
Wood River Oil and Refining Company was renamed Koch Industries in 1968 in honor of Fred Koch, the year after his death. At that time, it was primarily an engineering firm with a 35% interest in Great Northern Oil Company, which owned the Pine Bend Refinery in Minnesota, a crude oil-gathering system in Oklahoma, and some cattle ranches.
In 1968, Charles approached Union Oil of California about buying its 40% interest in Great Northern Oil Company but the discussions quickly stalled after Union asked for a large premium. In 1969, Koch merged his interest with the 15% interest owned by J. Howard Marshall, then owning a combined 50% of the company, preventing Union from assembling a controlling interest. They then acquired Union's interest. The Pine Bend Refinery produced chemicals, fibers, polymers, asphalt and other commodities such as petroleum coke and sulfur.
In 1970, Charles was joined at the family firm by his brother David Koch. Having started as a technical services manager, David became president of Koch Engineering in 1979.
In 1979, the company acquired 780 dealerships from Chrysler.
In June 1983, after a bitter legal and boardroom battle over the amount of dividends paid by the company, in a settlement, the stakes of William "Bill" Koch and Frederick R. Koch, who wanted the company to pay more dividends rather than reinvest in the business, were bought out for $620 million and $400 million, respectively, and Charles Koch and David Koch became majority owners in the company. In June 1985, William and Frederick sued their brothers claiming that they were underpaid for their stakes, but the suit was dismissed for lack of merit.
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In September 2001, the company acquired KoSa. This company is considered the largest producer of polyester in the world.
In 2005, the company acquired Georgia-Pacific, one of the world's largest timber, forest products and paper companies.
In 2008, the company discovered that the French affiliate Koch-Glitsch had violated bribery laws allegedly securing contracts in Algeria, Egypt, India, Morocco, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia after an investigation by Ethics Compliance officer, Egorova-Farines. After Koch Industries' investigative team looked into her findings, the four employees involved were terminated. According to journalist Jennifer Rubin, Koch Industries' general counsel stated that Egorova-Farines failed to promptly share the findings, choosing instead to give the information to a manager at Koch-Glitsch who was later fired for bribery. According to Koch Industries' general counsel, "Egorova-Farines was not fired but instead ran into performance problems, left the company to go on leave and never returned." Egorova-Farines sued Koch-Glitsch for wrongful termination in France, lost, and "was ordered to pay costs for bringing a frivolous case".
In 2010, the company was among the first group of nearly 2,000 employers that applied for and were granted federal reimbursements from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, under the new Early Retiree Reinsurance Program established by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, for providing health insurance to retirees too young to be eligible for Medicare.
In 2013, the company acquired Molex, a provider of electronic components, for $7.2 billion.
In September 2014, along with the private equity arm of Goldman Sachs, the company acquired Flint Group, a printing ink producer, for $3 billion.
In June 2014, the United Negro College Fund announced a $25 million grant from Koch Industries and the Charles Koch Foundation to go towards merit-based scholarships and general support of historically black colleges and universities.
In December 2014, the company acquired Oplink Communications, an optical networking device maker, for $445 million.
In 2015, the company joined the "Ban the Box" movement by removing questions about prior criminal convictions from its job application, making it easier for ex-offenders to find work.
In November 2015, the company "signed a Statement of Support with Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) that pledges Koch will provide supervisors with the tools to hire and support employees serving in the National Guard of the United States".
From 2017 to 2021, the company was featured in the Forbes' list of America's Best Employers by State.
In November 2017, Koch Disruptive Technologies was established, the corporation's venture arm, led by Chase Koch, son of Charles Koch.
In July 2019, the company sold its leases in the Athabasca oil sands.
In December 2021, Rupert Murdoch and his wife, Jerry Hall, acquired a 340,000 acres (1,400 km2) ranch in Beaverhead County, Montana, from Matador Cattle Company, a subsidiary of the company, for $200 million. Matador was formed in 1951 by Fred Koch. It won the 2010 Lone Star Land Steward Award. The company also owns ranches in Kansas and Texas that are being marketed for sale.
In March 2023, Koch Industries announced a leadership restructuring wherein Charles Koch will remain chairman and serve as co-CEO alongside Dave Robertson, who will serve as vice chairman of the board. Jim Hannan was named President and COO. Chase Koch and Richard Dinkel were both named executive Vice President while maintaining their other roles. In addition, Ray Geoffroy and Mark Luetters were named senior vice presidents.
In 2024, the company announced a name change to Koch, Inc. to reflect its broadening scope.
From Wikipedia’s article on Koch, Inc., shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5