Amin Nasser News

By Maha El Dahan and Yousef Saba

energy minister paused at about 9 p.m. in front of some 1,000 people and told them it was bedtime for Amin Nasser, the chief executive of giant state-owned oil producer Saudi Aramco. He was not joking.

By Yousef Saba and Maha El Dahan

Aramco has discovered two new natural gas fields in the Empty Quarter region, the state news agency quoted Saudi energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman as saying on Sunday. The discovery of the Al-Hiran gas field was confirmed after gas flowed at a rate of 30 million standard cubic feet per day, and 1,600 barrels of condensate daily. The Al-Mahakik gas field was confirmed after gas flowed from it at a rate of 0.85 million standard cubic feet, the agency said. «Natural gas was also discovered in five reservoirs in previously discovered fields,» the agency added, citing the minister. Other discoveries were also announced in fields in the Eastern Province, according to the agency. Aramco, overwhelmingly an oil producer, aims to boost its gas production by 50% by 2030 from 2021 levels. It said in late September that it agreed to acquire a strategic minority stake in liquefied natural gas (LNG) company MidOcean Energy for $500 million, with an option to increase the stake — part of its push into natural gas. Last month, Aramco Chief Executive Amin Nasser said Aramco was looking at more investments in LNG to boost its plans to become a leading player in the seaborne gas market.

Saudi state-run oil giant Aramco has made $30 billion in profit in the second quarter, a nearly 40% decline from the same period the previous year

Saudi state-run oil giant Aramco made $30 billion in profit in the second quarter, a nearly 40% decline from the same period the previous year

Aramco said Monday that it made $30 billion in profit in the second quarter, a nearly 40% decline from the same period the previous year that it attributed to lower oil prices. Total sales stood at just over 400 billion riyals (about $106 billion), down from 562 billion riyals ($150 billion in the second quarter of 2022. In an earnings report filed with the Saudi stock exchange, Aramco said the decrease «mainly reflected the impact of lower crude oil prices and weakening refining and chemicals margins». The company reported net income of 112.8 billion Saudi riyals ($30 billion) compared to 181.6 billion riyals ($48 billion) in the second quarter of 2022, a decline of 37.8% Aramco nevertheless raised its dividend paid out to investors to 110.18 billion riyals ($29.38 billion), compared to $18.8 billion in the second quarter of 2022. The performance-based dividend is partly based on the company's record earnings last year, it said. «Our strong results reflect our resilience and ability to adapt through market cycles,» Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said in a statement accompanying the report.

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander slammed a decision by BlackRock Inc., its largest external money manager, to appoint the chief executive of the world’s biggest oil company to its board.