Rich List reveals hidden WA success

Entrepreneur Vikas Rambal’s $4.4 billion fortune leads a group of dozens of new names to be recognised for their wealth generation in the inaugural Business News Rich List.

Mr Rambal’s 15 years of tenacious work developing a urea plant in WA paid off last year when private equity giant Global Infrastructure Partners invested $2.1 billion for a 45 per cent stake of his project.

His remaining majority stake, held through his family office Perdaman, as well as an Indian chemicals business and significant WA asset base, including shopping centres, takes his estimated wealth to a staggering $4.4 billion, making him the fifth richest WA resident, sitting behind Gina Rinehart, Nicola Forrest, Andrew Forrest and Kerry Stokes.

Mr Rambal leapfrogged established names such as Angela Bennett, Michael Hodgson and even relative newcomer Laurence Escalante to sit in the top five and push the Buckeridge family out of the top 10 in WA for the first time.

His listing along with 99 other business leaders and their families, collectively estimated to be worth more than $145 billion, was revealed last night at the launch event for the Rich List which is available in hard copy to subscribers as well as in digital form as the latest addition to Data & Insights in the member-only part of this website. 

While the top of the ladder offers few surprises, the 100 individuals and familes reveal a much wider view of where success has been obtained in the WA economy, and it is not all mining.

Food producers, automotive retailers and industrial land developers all feature in significant numbers throughout the list, alongside tradies-made-mining-services-magnates Luke Mader and Luke Herbert.

The Rich List also documents the public philanthropic efforts of WA’s wealthiest families.