Chevron paid its CEO $23.6 million in 2022, US SEC filing shows

By Sabrina Valle

HOUSTON (Reuters) -Chevron Corp CEO Michael Wirth was paid $23.6 million in 2022, a 4% increase from the prior year, according to a securities filing released on Wednesday.

Chevron (NYSE:)’s profit more than doubled in 2022 from the previous year to a record $36.5 billion due to high energy prices and cost-cutting measures including payroll reductions.

The total annual compensation for Chevron’s median employee fell to $161,488 in 2022, from $183,531 a year before, according to the filing.

Wirth’s total compensation is still under the $29 million he received in 2020, when Chevron registered losses as the pandemic hit fuel demand, and the $33 million he made in 2019.

His “actual compensation paid,” however, rose 60% to $86.7 million when equity awards, pension benefit adjustments and other compensation were factored in. The disclosure is part of a new SEC requirement.

Wirth ranked 87th on a list of the 100 most overpaid CEOs in 2022 compiled by shareholder advocacy group As You Sow, which uses the total compensation instead of the actual pay in its ranking.

“Oil companies have faced an elevated level of scrutiny for years,” said Rosanna Weaver of As You Sow, a shareholder advocacy group that puts out a ranking of the 100 most overpaid CEOs. “So (they) tend to stay very close to shareholder-approved practices overall.”

CEO compensations are on the rise this year, up 30% to an average of $38.1 million, according to As You Sow.