Chatting with Raymond Plank

Now living outside Sheridan, Wyoming, Plank remains a voracious reader and apt student of current affairs. Born in 1922 and raised in Minneapolis, he was a bomber pilot in the Pacific in World War II. Three of the B-24s he piloted barely made it back and never flew again.

Exiting Yale in 1946 with a major in international relations, Plank formed a small bookkeeping, tax and accounting firm in Minneapolis. It was transformed when it started managing oil and gas investment partnerships.

He and two friends, Truman Anderson and Chuck Arnao, formed Apache Corp. in 1954 with $250,000. In 1956, Apache offered its first oil and gas investment program and was an industry leader in that arena until 1986.

Apache went public in May 1969. Plank built it beyond his wildest dreams, with a series of savvy acquisitions and drilling throughout the U.S. and, today, in six countries. The company made some of the biggest acquisitions from the majors in the 1990s, obtaining a superior position in Australia, Canada and Egypt.

Its market cap reached $50 billion by 2008, his last full year as chairman. He retired in January 2009.

Plank has served on numerous civic, charitable and industry boards. He was honored as CEO of the Year three times by the Wall Street Transcript, and was named one of Hart Energy's 100 Most Influential People of the Petroleum Century.

Plank is a man of varied interests, from flying his own plane, to fishing and hunting, history, politics, the arts and, especially, education. In 1981, he created the Ucross Foundation on a 20,000-acre working ranch in northeast Wyoming, now a conference center and artist-in-residence program. Its alumni have won five Pulitzer Prizes and several Tony Awards and National Book Awards.

He has been called irascible, frank, a force of nature. Service to others has been a cornerstone of his life, following the advice he received at age 10 from his father to make "a very small difference on behalf of others."

The diary he has kept from the age of six forms the basis of his new memoir. It details his childhood, war service, education, and how he grew Apache through times of diversification into real estate and other industries, but always returned to oil and gas.

His many charitable causes include one focused on building 203 one-room schools to educate young girls in Egypt, and the endowed Fund for Teachers, which has supported more than 5,000 U.S. teachers—so far—with stipends and sabbaticals.

"It's not about what we get; it's about how we get it and how we use it," he writes. "It isn't what we inherit or pursue; it's about whether and how we elect to grow."

Investor Your life has been quite an adventure.

Plank It's been a superior life, and it's continuing. Lifetime learning is so important. If I weren't learning I wouldn't be around, because it's my mind that allows me to still get around. I've probably read 1,000 books so far this year.

Investor What is your opinion of the state of the oil industry?

Plank We need to recognize the industry's ability to contribute to our quality of life. The industry is in a revolutionary period. The technologies that have been around for decades have now been synthesized so that we have the capacity to be energy independent. At the same time, we have the responsibility, the opportunity to do that and be environmentally sensitive, and that goes with any and all forms of resource extraction.

Investor What advice would you give someone building an E&P?

Plank You have to understand the importance of having a plan. You front-end load your ambition with your considerations and what you hope to accomplish.

But the plan is not worth much if you can't make decisions, and you have to be able to adapt, like Eisenhower did in World War II. It's kind of like when you have your first kid—you've got to learn how to be a parent.

Investor Apache grew by drilling and acquisitions.

Plank Discovery strongly motivates me, as you could find something in the ground of great value. Every time you made a discovery you took another step forward.

Investor You always have strong opinions on energy policy and politics.

Plank We don't have an energy policy and we are not going to get one. But you cannot forego use of energy to create wealth and jobs. It would be better if the use of the Earth's bounty is welcomed and less of a hostile thought. The industry is a whipping boy.

I'm trying to influence this at least somewhat, to see the political mess out there come together so we can deal with the horrible problem of the deficit, creating jobs. This administration has a fundamental hostility toward corporate America.

Investor Can we can achieve energy independence, and do you approve of exporting liquefied natural gas?

Plank The answer is yes and yes. I do believe the reserves are there, we've got 100-year reserves.