#387 - Ken Hersh - Co-Founder NGP Energy Capital Management - The Godfather of Energy Private Equity

Since 2016, Ken Hersh has served as President and CEO of the George W. Bush Presidential Center which houses the George W. Bush Library and Museum and the George W. Bush Institute.  In 1988, he co-founded NGP Energy Capital Management, one of the nation’s largest natural resources private equity firms which pioneered private capital investing in the sector. Until 2016, he served as CEO, investing over $12 billion, earning a 27-year 30% annualized rate of return, making it one of the nation’s leading private investors.  In 2023, the Oil and Gas Investor magazine inducted Ken into its Hart Energy Hall of Fame as one of the top 50 “pioneering men and women who have shaped energy over the last half century.” Additionally, Ken manages his family office that invests across multiple industries. He sits on numerous corporate and not-for-profit boards, including the Texas Rangers Baseball Club. He sits on the Board of Overseers of the Hoover Institution and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Links:  George W. Bush Presidential Center - https://www.bushcenter.org/ Support our Sponsors Ramp: https://ramp.com/fort Vesto: https://www.vesto.com/fort Topics: (00:00:00) - Intro (00:03:53) - Ken’s early career (00:16:36) - Richard Rainwater and creating NGP (00:29:25) - The original thesis for NGP (00:34:55) - Scaling NGP (00:46:36) - The Shale revolution (00:49:29) - Horizontal Drilling in 2025 (00:51:45) - The importance of having a great business partner (00:54:01) - Is “Let’s back teams” still the best investment model? (00:55:01) - Ken’s approach to raising capital (00:56:37) - Is there a modern-day Richard Rainwater? (00:58:34) - When a deal goes wrong (01:06:04) - The global state of energy in 2025 Chris on Social Media: The Fort Podcast on Twitter/X: https://x.com/theFORTpodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefortpodcast LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd   Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX Visit our website: https://bit.ly/43SOvys Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0 Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO