Saudi Aramco profits jump 90% due to high oil prices

Saudi Aramco, the giant oil producer, said on Sunday that its profits in the second quarter jumped 90 percent compared to the same period last year, reaching $48.2 billion. It is the latest energy producer to report bumper profits on the back of higher oil prices.

Aramco, Saudi Arabia’s national oil company, said its earnings reflected increased demand for crude and higher refining profits. The state-run company expects oil demand to continue to grow over the rest of the decade.

The company has benefited from a growing need for energy as economic activity rebounded around the world after the coronavirus pandemic dented demand.

But oil producers are also benefiting from the price hike that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.

From late February to June, crude oil prices rose more than 36 percent, to nearly $120 a barrel, driven in part by Western sanctions used to punish Russia. In recent weeks, major oil companies including ExxonMobil, ChevronAnd the coincidenceAnd the BP and TotalEnergies made huge profits, often score.

Rising crude oil prices led to sharp increases at the gas pump, with the average gallon price briefly hitting more than $5 in the US.

Since June, oil prices have fallen, with Brent crude, the international benchmark, at $98 a barrel on Friday, and gas. It drops to less than $4 a gallon on average in the United States of America. But prices are still relatively high – a year ago, Brent crude was around $61 a barrel – and there are growing concerns that major oil producers are approaching their maximum production limit.

Aramco’s CEO, Amin Nasser, appeared to address those concerns Sunday in the company’s statement.

“While global market volatility and economic uncertainty persist, events during the first half of this year support our view that continued investment in our industry is essential,” said Mr. Nasser.

He said Aramco’s capital investment program, which increased 25 percent in its last quarter, to $9.4 billion, was the largest in its history. “Our approach is to invest in the reliable energy and petrochemicals the world needs,” he said, while also seeking to invest in renewable energy, including hydrogen.

Aramco said it will pay a dividend of $18.8 billion in the third quarter, unchanged from the previous quarter. Most of the money will go to the Saudi government, which owns nearly all of the company’s shares, which has a market capitalization of more than $2 trillion.