Adding $12B To Wealth In 2022, Indian Green Energy Tycoon Becomes Asia's Richest Person

While Tesla Inc. TSLA CEO Elon Musk remains the world’s richest person, Indian billionaire Gautam Adani has dethroned compatriot Mukesh Ambani to become the richest person in Asia.

What Happened: Adani — chairman of the power-to-ports conglomerate Adani Group —is now the richest person in Asia and the tenth richest person in the world with a net worth of $88.5 billion, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Adani is also the world’s biggest wealth gainer this year, with a $12 billion surge in his personal fortune this year. He has even beaten the year-to-date gains of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A) chairman Warren Buffett, the only positive gainer among the top ten billionaires on the list this year.

In comparison, Ambani has a net worth of $87.9 billion. He is the chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), India’s most valuable company.

Why It Matters: A focus on green energy and a rapid rise in the stocks of companies controlled by Adani catapulted the tycoon to the spot of Asia’s second-richest person in 2021.

Adani’s net worth got a major boost from his renewable energy company Adani Green Energy Limited (AGEL), whose share price almost doubled last year.

AGEL — one of the largest renewable companies in India — has said it plans to become the world’s largest solar player by 2025 and the world’s largest renewable company by 2030.

In addition to Adani’s ambitions in the fast-expanding green energy sector, he is making big investments in airports, ports, power plants and mines.

Adani’s fortunes are expected to get a further boost from the initial public offering of edible oil company Adani Wilmar on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Ambani’s Reliance Industries is also making a big play in the green energy space.

Read Next: Why Is Long-Time-Backer Peter Thiel Departing Facebook-Parent Meta's Board?

Photo: Courtesy of Wikimedia