Saudi Oil Giant Making Record Profits as Prices Soar

It’s a good time to be in the oil business, with US sanctions and hostility toward Russia leading to supply shortfalls and record profits. Unsurprisingly, one of the big beneficiaries is Saudi state-run oil giant Aramco.

Given the amount of attention it gets, one might’ve expected the Yemen War to be a drag on profitability, with the Houthi strikes on Saudi targets tending toward Aramco facilities in the south.

Apart from a few times where shipping slowed off maximum, the bottom line seemed to be fine, with Aramco announcing $110 billion in net profits in 2021, up 124% from the previous year’s $49 billion in 2020.

The 2020 profits were down a bit from previous peaks before COVID-19, which dragged them down from $88.2 billion in 2019. Now, Aramco is back at record profits, and with prices rising yet more in 2022, they look to continue that surge.

The Saudis are still insisting that the Houthis remain a threat, but with the amount of money coming in, it’s hard to fathom any Houthi attack doing any serious harm to the company.