Filippo Ghirelli’s rise from a scrappy Italian engineer to a billionaire investor is exactly the kind of American-friendly, free-market story conservatives should cheer. He didn’t wait for government handouts or political favors; he took risks, moved capital where it made sense, and let the market reward his judgment. In an era when elites preach restraint and punishment for profit, men like Ghirelli remind us that wealth created through entrepreneurship builds real capacity and jobs.
Ghirelli’s decisive move was buying a 25 percent stake in one of India’s largest refineries, a bargain purchase that turned into a life-changing windfall when the value of that holding exploded. He bought the stake from Trafigura for roughly $169 million after patiently waiting out regulatory delays, and Forbes now estimates that position is worth well over a billion dollars.
That refinery, operating under Nayara Energy, didn’t just sit idle — it posted eye-popping profits as India’s energy demand surged, recording hundreds of millions in net income on tens of billions in revenue in the fiscal year ending March 2025. Hard-headed businessmen found supply, logistics and customers even when regulators and bureaucrats tried to complicate commerce. Those numbers are not the product of woke accounting; they are the direct result of efficient operation and opportunistic buying in a global market.
When Brussels and other actors tried to make life difficult — imposing sanctions tied to Russian involvement that led banks to pause payments and technology providers to disconnect services — Nayara adapted and kept the pumps running. The company quickly found new trading partners and new markets, proving that commerce and common sense can outmaneuver political theater. This episode should be a wake-up call: sanctions and virtue-signaling by corporations hurt ordinary business and cede advantage to those willing to meet real demand.
Rather than cashing out and retiring, Ghirelli launched Infracorp in 2024 and is plowing private capital into transportation hubs, energy projects, space modules and decentralized AI infrastructure. He’s not asking politicians for subsidies or special favors; he’s cutting checks, hiring experts and trying to build useful infrastructure that can strengthen Western supply chains and technological resilience. Ambitious, audacious and unapologetically capitalist, these are the kinds of projects that should get conservatives excited about the future of industry and defense.
This is the opposite of the crony, insider capitalism the left likes to complain about — it’s private men and women taking responsibility, deploying capital, and accepting the risk of failure. If American policymakers want growth and strategic independence, they should make it easier for these entrepreneurs to operate, not smother them with red tape or punish them for seeking profit. We ought to celebrate winners who reinvest returns into projects that create jobs and sovereign capability, not shame them.
One concrete example: Ghirelli purchased Riviera Airport in 2024 and plans to expand it into the first hub of a 16-airport private network throughout Europe, spending roughly sixty million dollars per site to build infrastructure for private and business aviation. Turning small regional assets into high-functioning hubs is exactly the kind of private-sector modernization that keeps economies nimble and wealthy citizens mobile. These are practical investments that strengthen commerce and create high-value employment — not hollow gestures favored by bureaucrats.
Washington and state capitals should take notice: when capital is free to flow and innovators are free to build, national resilience follows. Instead of demonizing success or weaponizing sanctions that penalize innocents and reward clever workarounds, conservative leaders should champion policies that protect property, encourage investment, and keep regulatory barriers low. Celebrate entrepreneurs like Ghirelli — because their wins are a blueprint for how to outcompete rivals, create prosperity, and secure the future for hardworking people.
