Saudi Aramco’s net profit jumped 82%

Energy giant Saudi Aramco reported on Sunday an 82 percent jump in net profit for the first quarter of the year, subsidised with the surge in oil prices that has made it the world’s most valuable company.

“During the first quarter, our strategic downstream expansion progressed further in both Asia and Europe, and we continue to develop opportunities that complement our growth objectives,” Aramco President and CEO Amin Nasser said in a press release Sunday.

The latest financial results published four days after Aramco replaced Apple as the world’s most worthy company, with shares value $2.42 trillion compared to Apple’s $2.37 trillion.

Aramco’s net income of $39.5 billion was up from $21.7 billion in 2021, “primarily driven by higher crude oil prices and volumes sold, and improved downstream margins,” it said in the release.

Aramco is spending billions of dollars to increase its maximum sustainable crude production to 13 million barrels a day from 12 million by 2027. It also targets to raise natural gas output more than 50 percent by 2030.

Also on Sunday, Aramco said it should finish gas projects at Hawiyah and Haradh in the east of the kingdom this year, enabling it to pump an extra 1.3 billion cubic feet a day.