Texas CEO Earns $76M Despite Company's Massive Oil Losses

Houston's top earner last year turned out to be the head of an oil firm that sold zero crude and posted a massive loss instead. James 'Jim' Flores, who serves as chairman and chief executive of Sable Offshore, brought home $76 million in 2025, according to securities filings seen by the Houston Chronicle. The company, rooted in Texas but running pipelines along California's coast, managed no crude sales last year while reporting a net loss hovering around $410.2 million. His pay package shifted significantly from a standard salary; base compensation fell to $1.3 million, yet he walked away with a $3.9 million bonus and roughly $69 million in stock value.

This executive sits at the center of a fierce legal and political fight in California following a rupture in 2015 that triggered one of the state's worst oil spills. More than 140,000 gallons of oil from the Santa Ynez Unit pipeline gushed out. That pipeline was owned by Exxon Mobil and Plains All American Pipeline at the time. The spill blackened beaches stretching 150 miles from Santa Barbara down to Los Angeles. It also poisoned habitat for endangered whales and sea turtles. Sable purchased the pipeline in 2024. Despite the history, operations were allowed to resume pumping oil off the California coast on March 14, 2026. This move came after an emergency order from US Energy Secretary Chris Wright under the Defense Production Act, which cited the ongoing war in Iran as justification.

"We are encouraged by the productivity of the wells," Flores stated in an August comment. Sable Offshore CEO James Flores holds the title of highest-paid executive in Houston based on records. He plans to collaborate with midstream and downstream partners to push more domestic crude oil from the Santa Ynez Unit into the market. The goal is to benefit California consumers alongside the US Military and its global allies. Democratic leaders in California and environmentalists pushed back hard against this decision. Governor Gavin Newsom issued a statement calling it an attempt to illegally restart a pipeline whose operators face criminal charges. He noted that multiple court orders prohibit restarting operations right now. "California will not stand by while the Trump administration attempts to sacrifice our coastal communities, our environment, and our $51 billion coastal economy," Newsom said. He added that the administration and Sable are defying court orders and would see them back in court.

Flores took charge of the company in September 2021, per his biography on Sable's website. He earned a bachelor's degree in finance and petroleum land management from Louisiana State University before working for several energy firms. In the 1990s, he cofounded oil and gas company Ocean Energy. He later took over Plains Exploration & Production in 2001. By 2017, he became CEO of West Texas drilling company Sable Permian Resources, which filed for bankruptcy in 2020. The Daily Mail reached out to Flores and Sable Offshore seeking comment on these developments.