Baker Hughes Company
Company History
Baker Hughes History: Founding, Growth & Key Milestones
Founded 1987 in Houston, Texas
When was Baker Hughes founded?
Baker Hughes was founded in 1987 in Houston, Texas by Reuben C. Baker and Howard R. Hughes Sr., making it 39 years old.
- Founded
- 1987
- Founding place
- Houston, Texas
- Founders
- Reuben C. Baker and Howard R. Hughes Sr.
- Headquarters today
- Houston, Texas, United States
- Milestones documented
- 21 (1907–2026)
- Current CEO
- Lorenzo Simonelli
- Acquisitions
- 6
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1907 | Reuben C. Baker patents the Well Casing Shoe |
| 1909 | Howard R. Hughes Sr. patents the two-cone roller drill bit |
| 1913 | Baker Casing Shoe Company founded in Coalinga, California |
| 1915 | Sharp-Hughes renamed Hughes Tool Company |
| 1928 | Baker Casing Shoe Company renamed Baker Oil Tools |
| 1976 | Baker Oil Tools reorganised as Baker International Corporation |
| 1987 | Baker International and Hughes Tool merge to form Baker Hughes Incorporated |
| 1990 | Baker Hughes buys Eastman Christensen |
| 1998 | Baker Hughes acquires Western Atlas in a $5.5 billion merger |
| 2000 | Michael E. Wiley becomes chairman, president and chief executive |
| 2006 | Baker Hughes exits the WesternGeco seismic joint venture |
| 2007 | Baker Hughes pays $44.1 million to settle Kazakhstan bribery charges |
| 2010 | Baker Hughes completes the $5.5 billion BJ Services acquisition |
| 2014 | Halliburton agrees to buy Baker Hughes for $34.6 billion |
| 2016 | Halliburton deal abandoned and Halliburton pays a $3.5 billion fee |
| 2017 | Baker Hughes combines with GE Oil and Gas; Lorenzo Simonelli becomes CEO |
| 2019 | Company renamed Baker Hughes Company and GE drops below a majority stake |
| 2021 | Stock listing moves from the New York Stock Exchange to Nasdaq |
| 2022 | GE ownership ends and Baker Hughes suspends most Russian activity |
| 2025 | Record FY2025 adjusted EBITDA, orders and free cash flow |
| 2026 | Chart Industries acquired and two businesses divested |
- Where was Baker Hughes founded?
- Baker Hughes was founded in Houston, Texas in 1987.
- Who founded Baker Hughes?
- Baker Hughes was founded by Reuben C. Baker and Howard R. Hughes Sr.
- When did Baker Hughes start?
- Baker Hughes was founded in 1987.
- How old is Baker Hughes?
- Baker Hughes is 39 years old as of 2026.
Founding Story
Howard R. Hughes Sr. and Walter B. Sharp were drilling in Texas in the late 1900s where fishtail bits could not cut hard rock. Working from a prototype using two cone-shaped cutters, they tested a dual-cone roller bit in secret on a rig at Goose Creek, Texas, and Hughes was granted U.S. patents on August 10, 1909. The bit crushed rock rather than scraping it and made rotary drilling practical at depth. The partners traded as Sharp-Hughes Tool Company and leased the bits rather than selling them; after Sharp died in 1912 Hughes bought out his stake and renamed the business Hughes Tool Company in 1915. Separately, in California, contract driller Reuben C. Baker patented a well casing shoe on July 16, 1907 and founded the Baker Casing Shoe Company in 1913. The two companies merged in April 1987.
Founders
Reuben C. Baker
Baker Hughes dates from a 1987 merger, but both halves were built on early drilling patents. Reuben C. Baker was drilling in the Coalinga field in California when he patented the Baker Well Casing Shoe on July 16, 1907. Before it, running steel casing to the bottom of a hole without collapsing the wellbore was slow and unreliable; the shoe guided casing down the hole and let it be cemented in place, and the design stayed essentially unchanged for about 40 years. Baker created the Baker Casing Shoe Company in 1913, renamed it Baker Oil Tools in 1928 as the product range widened into completion and production equipment, and the group was reorganised as Baker International Corporation in 1976. In Texas, Howard R. Hughes Sr. attacked the other bottleneck, drilling through hard rock. Fishtail bits scraped rather than cut, which stopped progress in formations like those around Spindletop. With Walter B. Sharp he tested a dual-cone roller bit at Goose Creek, Texas, and was granted patents on August 10, 1909; its hardened steel cones crushed rock and let drillers reach deeper reserves. Sharp-Hughes Tool Company leased rather than sold the bits, and after Sharp died in 1912 Hughes bought his stake and renamed the business Hughes Tool Company in 1915. The two companies ran independently for nearly eighty years until the oil bust of the 1980s pushed them together in April 1987. Reuben C. Baker was born in 1872 in Purcellville.
Howard R. Hughes Sr.
Howard Robard Hughes Sr. (September 9, 1869 to January 14, 1924) founded Hughes Tool Company. Born in Missouri, he studied engineering and worked the Texas and Louisiana oil fields before going into partnership with Walter B. Sharp. Together they developed the first commercially successful two-cone roller drill bit, tested in secret at Goose Creek, Texas, and patented on August 10, 1909. The bit made rotary drilling practical in hard formations and became the industry standard. After Sharp died in 1912 Hughes bought out his partner stake and renamed the company Hughes Tool Company in 1915. The business generated the fortune his son Howard Hughes Jr. later put into aviation, film and real estate. Hughes Sr. died in 1924; the company he left merged with Baker International 63 years later to form Baker Hughes. Education: Harvard University; Iowa State University. Howard R. Hughes Sr. was born in 1869.
Key Milestones
Reuben C. Baker patents the Well Casing Shoe
On July 16, 1907, Reuben Carlton Baker was granted U.S. Patent No. 860,115 for the Well Casing Shoe, a device that kept oil flowing while casing was run into a well. Baker was a contract driller in the Kern River and Coalinga fields of California and held more than 150 patents over his career.
Source: aoghs.orgHoward R. Hughes Sr. patents the two-cone roller drill bit
Howard R. Hughes Sr., working with Walter B. Sharp, tested a dual-cone roller bit on a rig at Goose Creek, Texas, and was granted U.S. patents on August 10, 1909. The bit crushed hard rock instead of scraping it and made rotary drilling practical in deeper formations. The partners traded as Sharp-Hughes Tool Company.
Source: aoghs.orgBaker Casing Shoe Company founded in Coalinga, California
Baker created the Baker Casing Shoe Company to manufacture and license his casing accessories. The design of the Baker casing shoe stayed essentially unchanged for about 40 years and the business became a pillar of the emerging oilfield service sector.
Source: ethw.orgSharp-Hughes renamed Hughes Tool Company
Walter B. Sharp died in 1912 and Hughes acquired his partner stake. The business was renamed Hughes Tool Company in 1915. Its rock bits funded the fortune later inherited by Howard Hughes Jr.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgBaker Casing Shoe Company renamed Baker Oil Tools
The company was renamed Baker Oil Tools, Inc. as it widened its range from casing shoes into well completion and production equipment.
Source: ethw.orgBaker Oil Tools reorganised as Baker International Corporation
The Baker businesses were reorganised under the Baker International Corporation holding company, the entity that would merge with Hughes Tool eleven years later.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgBaker International and Hughes Tool merge to form Baker Hughes Incorporated
The merger was formally completed in early April 1987 once a Justice Department consent decree was signed and filed, and the Los Angeles Times reported the combination at about $1.2 billion. James D. Woods, previously chief executive of Baker International, became chief executive of the merged company, which was headquartered in Houston. Baker had agreed to sell units, including its submersible pump and tricone bit divisions, to clear antitrust objections.
Source: latimes.comBaker Hughes buys Eastman Christensen
Baker Hughes acquired Eastman Christensen, a specialist in directional drilling equipment and measurement-while-drilling tools. The capability became the core of what is now the Well Construction product line.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgBaker Hughes acquires Western Atlas in a $5.5 billion merger
Baker Hughes and Western Atlas signed a definitive merger agreement valued at $5.5 billion in May 1998, adding seismic acquisition, wireline logging and reservoir evaluation. The Western Atlas wireline division became Baker Atlas.
Source: ogj.comMichael E. Wiley becomes chairman, president and chief executive
After Max L. Lukens resigned in January 2000 and director Joe B. Foster served as interim chairman, president and chief executive, Baker Hughes named former ARCO executive Michael Wiley as president, chairman and chief executive effective August 14, 2000.
Source: latimes.comBaker Hughes exits the WesternGeco seismic joint venture
Schlumberger bought the Baker Hughes 30% interest in the WesternGeco seismic joint venture for $2.4 billion, ending the partnership formed in 2000 and removing seismic acquisition from the Baker Hughes portfolio.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgBaker Hughes pays $44.1 million to settle Kazakhstan bribery charges
On April 26, 2007, subsidiary Baker Hughes Services International pleaded guilty to Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations and paid an $11 million criminal fine for payments routed to an official in connection with the Karachaganak field in Kazakhstan. The parent settled with the SEC for a $10 million civil penalty plus more than $23 million in disgorgement and prejudgment interest, about $44.1 million in total and the largest combined FCPA sanction imposed to that date.
Source: justice.govBaker Hughes completes the $5.5 billion BJ Services acquisition
Baker Hughes closed its cash-and-stock acquisition of pressure pumping and cementing company BJ Services on April 28, 2010. The Justice Department required the divestiture of BJ vessel-based stimulation assets in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico as a condition of clearance.
Source: prnewswire.comHalliburton agrees to buy Baker Hughes for $34.6 billion
On November 17, 2014, Halliburton and Baker Hughes announced a definitive stock-and-cash agreement valued at $34.6 billion. The deal drew antitrust review in the United States and Europe almost immediately.
Source: ir.halliburton.comHalliburton deal abandoned and Halliburton pays a $3.5 billion fee
The Justice Department sued on April 6, 2016, to block the combination. The companies terminated the merger agreement on May 1, 2016, and Halliburton paid Baker Hughes the $3.5 billion termination fee by May 4, 2016.
Source: ir.halliburton.comBaker Hughes combines with GE Oil and Gas; Lorenzo Simonelli becomes CEO
The combination closed on July 3, 2017, creating Baker Hughes, a GE company. Baker Hughes shareholders received a special cash dividend of $17.50 per share and 37.5% of the new company, with GE holding 62.5%. Lorenzo Simonelli, who had led GE Oil and Gas since October 2013, became president and chief executive, and chairman in October 2017.
Source: ge.comCompany renamed Baker Hughes Company and GE drops below a majority stake
GE sold shares in September 2019 for about $2.7 billion in net proceeds, cutting its holding to roughly 38.4%. The name change to Baker Hughes Company took effect October 17, 2019, and the Class A stock began trading on the New York Stock Exchange as BKR on October 18, 2019.
Source: investors.bakerhughes.comStock listing moves from the New York Stock Exchange to Nasdaq
Baker Hughes announced on October 27, 2021 that it would move its Class A common stock and listed bonds to the Nasdaq Global Select Market, and trading there began on December 7, 2021 under the same BKR ticker. The company was added to the Nasdaq-100 Index in December 2022.
Source: investors.bakerhughes.comGE ownership ends and Baker Hughes suspends most Russian activity
The 2022 Form 10-K states that GE no longer had an economic interest in Baker Hughes Holdings LLC as of December 31, 2022, down from 11.4% a year earlier. During the same year the company sold part of its OFSE Russia business and suspended substantially all remaining Russian operations after halting new investment there on March 19, 2022. It also reorganised four product companies into the OFSE and IET reporting segments.
Source: sec.govRecord FY2025 adjusted EBITDA, orders and free cash flow
Revenue was $27.733B, roughly flat against $27.829B in 2024, with attributable net income of $2.588B. Adjusted EBITDA reached a record $4,825M, orders a record $29,585M including a record $14,871M at IET, and free cash flow a record $2,732M. Remaining performance obligations ended the year at a record $35.9B, of which $32.4B sat in IET.
Source: investors.bakerhughes.comChart Industries acquired and two businesses divested
Baker Hughes completed its $13.6 billion acquisition of Chart Industries on July 16, 2026 and set it up as a third reporting segment led by senior vice president Jim Apostolides, targeting $325 million of annualised cost synergies within three years. On January 1, 2026 the company closed the sale of its Precision Sensors and Instrumentation business to Crane Company and completed a joint venture with a Cactus, Inc. subsidiary holding its surface pressure control business.
Source: investors.bakerhughes.comMajor Acquisitions
Eastman Christensen
1990Baker Hughes bought Eastman Christensen to add directional drilling equipment and measurement-while-drilling technology, capabilities it lacked against Schlumberger and Halliburton.
Western Atlas Inc.
1998Baker Hughes agreed a merger with Western Atlas valued at $5.5 billion in May 1998 to add seismic acquisition, wireline logging and reservoir evaluation, creating what the companies described as the third largest oilfield service firm.
BJ Services Company
2010Baker Hughes acquired BJ Services in a cash-and-stock transaction valued at $5.5 billion to add pressure pumping, cementing and stimulation capacity for North American unconventional work.
GE Oil and Gas
2017Baker Hughes combined with GE Oil and Gas to add gas turbines, compressors, pumps, valves and modular LNG systems to an oilfield service portfolio. Baker Hughes holders received a special dividend of $17.50 per share plus 37.5% of the new company; GE held 62.5%.
Continental Disc Corporation
2025Baker Hughes bought Continental Disc Corporation from investment partnerships managed by Tinicum Incorporated in an all-cash transaction of approximately $540 million to add safety-critical pressure management products.
Chart Industries, Inc.
2026Baker Hughes agreed on July 29, 2025 to acquire Chart Industries for $210.00 per share in cash, a total enterprise value of $13.6 billion, to expand into thermal management, air and gas handling and cryogenic equipment for LNG, data centre, nuclear and carbon capture markets.
Keep researching Baker Hughes
Baker Hughes Company History FAQ
What were the main milestones between 1907 and 1987?
Reuben C. Baker patented a well casing shoe on July 16, 1907 and founded the Baker Casing Shoe Company in 1913, renamed Baker Oil Tools in 1928 and reorganised as Baker International in 1976. Howard R. Hughes Sr. patented a two-cone roller drill bit on August 10, 1909; the Sharp-Hughes business became Hughes Tool Company in 1915. The two merged in April 1987.
What happened in the 1987 merger?
The merger was formally completed in early April 1987 once a Justice Department consent decree was signed, and the Los Angeles Times reported the combination at about $1.2 billion. James D. Woods, previously chief executive of Baker International, led the merged company, the head office moved to Houston, and Baker sold units including its submersible pump and tricone bit divisions to clear antitrust objections.
What happened during the 2014 to 2016 oil crash and the Halliburton breakup fee?
Halliburton agreed in November 2014 to buy Baker Hughes in a stock-and-cash deal valued at $34.6 billion. The Justice Department sued on April 6, 2016, the companies terminated the agreement on May 1, 2016, and Halliburton paid Baker Hughes the $3.5 billion termination fee by May 4, 2016.
What were the key events in the GE Oil and Gas merger and the later separation?
The combination closed on July 3, 2017, creating Baker Hughes, a GE company, and bringing the Nuovo Pignone turbomachinery operations in Florence, Italy. Baker Hughes holders received a $17.50 per share special dividend and 37.5% of the new company while GE took 62.5%. GE cut its stake to about 38.4% in September 2019 and had no economic interest left as of December 31, 2022.
When did the company become Baker Hughes Company?
The name change from Baker Hughes, a GE company took effect on October 17, 2019, and the Class A common stock began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker BKR on October 18, 2019.
How did the LNG equipment business grow after 2021?
Gas technology equipment orders for liquefaction trains and gas infrastructure became the main growth driver. IET orders reached a record $14,871M in FY2025 and IET remaining performance obligations a record $32.4B, with FY2025 liquefaction awards including Train 5 of NextDecade Rio Grande LNG, six LM9000 turbines for Commonwealth LNG, and selection by Glenfarne for Alaska LNG equipment subject to final investment decision.
When did Baker Hughes move to Nasdaq and join the Nasdaq-100?
The company announced on October 27, 2021 that it would move its Class A common stock and listed bonds from the New York Stock Exchange to the Nasdaq Global Select Market, and trading there began on December 7, 2021 under the same BKR ticker. It was added to the Nasdaq-100 Index in December 2022.
What changed in the portfolio in 2026?
On January 1, 2026 Baker Hughes closed the sale of its Precision Sensors and Instrumentation business to Crane Company and completed a surface pressure control joint venture with a Cactus, Inc. subsidiary. On July 16, 2026 it completed a $13.6 billion acquisition of Chart Industries, which became a third reporting segment.
When was Baker Hughes founded?
The modern company was formed in 1987 through the massive merger of Baker International and the legendary Hughes Tool Company (founded by Howard Hughes Sr.).
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