Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil-producing company, increased its 2023 dividend by 30 per cent despite a decline in annual net profit due to lower oil prices and the effect of output cuts.
Net profit for the 12 months to the end of December reached $121.3 billion, compared to a record $161.1 billion in 2022, the state oil company said on Sunday in a statement to the Tadawul stock exchange, where its shares are traded.
The company attributed the year-on-year decrease to lower crude oil prices and volumes sold as well as reduced refining and chemicals margins. This was partially offset by a decrease in production royalties during the year and lower income taxes and zakat.
Revenue last year fell by more than 17 per cent to $440.88 billion. Capital investments reached $49.7 billion, up 28 per cent annually.
The company's dividends for the year rose to $97.8 billion.
“In 2023 we achieved our second-highest ever net income,” said Amin Nasser, Aramco president and chief executive.
“Our resilience and agility contributed to healthy cash flows and high levels of profitability, despite a backdrop of economic headwinds.”
Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world’s oil, fell by about 15 per cent during the fourth quarter on higher-than-expected supply and concerns about the outlook for fuel demand.
Aramco reported a record profit in 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine pushed oil prices to about $140 a barrel. In the same year, global energy majors, including BP, Chevron, Shell and Exxon Mobil, posted combined profits of more than $200 billion.
In January, Aramco scrapped plans to boost production capacity to 13 million barrels per day by 2027, from 12 million bpd currently.
The decision may have been influenced by factors such as escalating costs of developing projects, ample spare capacity and weakening demand outlook for crude amid growing adoption of renewable energy and electric vehicles, according to analysts.
Aramco’s average hydrocarbon production was 12.8 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, including 10.7 million bpd of total liquids last year.
“The recent directive from the government to maintain our maximum sustainable capacity … provides increased flexibility, as well as an opportunity to focus on increasing gas production and growing our liquids-to-chemicals business,” Mr Nasser said.
“At the same time, we continue to make progress on several strategic crude oil increments which will contribute to our reliability, operational flexibility and ability to seize market opportunities,” he added.
Aramco expects capital investments this year to be between $48 to $58 billion, growing until the middle of the decade.
The company said that the move to maintain its oil production at 12 million bpd mainly by postponing certain projects and reducing drilling activity will lower capital expenditure by about $40 billion between now and 2028.
Aramco also said its gas projects were “advancing” to increase production by more than 60 per cent by the end of the decade, compared with 2021 levels.
The company's daily gas processing capacity was at around 18 billion standard cubic feet per day in 2022.
Last year, the company announced its first international investment in liquefied natural gas, following the signing of agreements to acquire a strategic minority stake in MidOcean Energy.
The completion of the deal is subject to closing conditions, which include regulatory approvals, Aramco said.
The company will distribute a base dividend of $20.3 billion for the last three months of 2023, which will be paid out in the first quarter.
On top of this base dividend, Aramco's board has also approved an additional dividend payment of $10.8 billion, which is linked to the company's performance.
Last week, Saudi Arabia transferred an 8 per cent stake in Aramco to the Public Investment Fund amid reports that the government could be preparing to offer more shares for sale in the energy company.
Following the transfer, the kingdom remains Aramco’s largest shareholder, retaining a stake of about 82 per cent, the company said in a filing on Thursday.
Last year, the Wall Street Journal reported that Aramco was considering a $50 billion share offering, potentially the largest in global capital market history.
THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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RESULT
Al Hilal 4 Persepolis 0
Khribin (31', 54', 89'), Al Shahrani 40'
Red card: Otayf (Al Hilal, 49')
Most%20polluted%20cities%20in%20the%20Middle%20East
%3Cp%3E1.%20Baghdad%2C%20Iraq%3Cbr%3E2.%20Manama%2C%20Bahrain%3Cbr%3E3.%20Dhahran%2C%20Saudi%20Arabia%3Cbr%3E4.%20Kuwait%20City%2C%20Kuwait%3Cbr%3E5.%20Ras%20Al%20Khaimah%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E6.%20Ash%20Shihaniyah%2C%20Qatar%3Cbr%3E7.%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E8.%20Cairo%2C%20Egypt%3Cbr%3E9.%20Riyadh%2C%20Saudi%20Arabia%3Cbr%3E10.%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3ESource%3A%202022%20World%20Air%20Quality%20Report%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
MATCH INFO
Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
((Disclaimer))
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SRI LANKA SQUAD
Upul Tharanga (captain), Dinesh Chandimal, Niroshan Dickwella
Lahiru Thirimanne, Kusal Mendis, Milinda Siriwardana
Chamara Kapugedara, Thisara Perera, Seekuge Prasanna
Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal, Dushmantha Chameera
Vishwa Fernando, Akila Dananjaya, Jeffrey Vandersay
What it means to be a conservationist
Who is Enric Sala?
Enric Sala is an expert on marine conservation and is currently the National Geographic Society's Explorer-in-Residence. His love of the sea started with his childhood in Spain, inspired by the example of the legendary diver Jacques Cousteau. He has been a university professor of Oceanography in the US, as well as working at the Spanish National Council for Scientific Research and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Biodiversity and the Bio-Economy. He has dedicated his life to protecting life in the oceans. Enric describes himself as a flexitarian who only eats meat occasionally.
What is biodiversity?
According to the United Nations Environment Programme, all life on earth – including in its forests and oceans – forms a “rich tapestry of interconnecting and interdependent forces”. Biodiversity on earth today is the product of four billion years of evolution and consists of many millions of distinct biological species. The term ‘biodiversity’ is relatively new, popularised since the 1980s and coinciding with an understanding of the growing threats to the natural world including habitat loss, pollution and climate change. The loss of biodiversity itself is dangerous because it contributes to clean, consistent water flows, food security, protection from floods and storms and a stable climate. The natural world can be an ally in combating global climate change but to do so it must be protected. Nations are working to achieve this, including setting targets to be reached by 2020 for the protection of the natural state of 17 per cent of the land and 10 per cent of the oceans. However, these are well short of what is needed, according to experts, with half the land needed to be in a natural state to help avert disaster.
U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES
UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)
Saturday 15 January: v Canada
Thursday 20 January: v England
Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh
UAE squad
Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly, Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya Shetty, Kai Smith
The Good Liar
Starring: Helen Mirren, Ian McKellen
Directed by: Bill Condon
Three out of five stars
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 0
Wolves 2 (Traore 80', 90 4')
At a glance
Fixtures All matches start at 9.30am, at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free
Thursday UAE v Ireland; Saturday UAE v Ireland; Jan 21 UAE v Scotland; Jan 23 UAE v Scotland
UAE squad Rohan Mustafa (c), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
The specs
Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder
Power: 220 and 280 horsepower
Torque: 350 and 360Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Price: from Dh136,521 VAT and Dh166,464 VAT
On sale: now
Cultural fiesta
What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421, Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day.
WORLD'S%2010%20HIGHEST%20MOUNTAINS
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