Aramco ready to splash cash upstream

Soaring annual profits to be channelled into unapologetic expansion of output capacity

The headline figures from Saudi Aramco’s unveiling of its annual results in the eastern city of Dhahran in March were both dramatic and predictable. A year-long market recovery from the depredations of the coronavirus pandemic delivered profits more than double those seen in 2020. Of greater long-term significance were the indications given as to what the company—producer of around a tenth of the world’s oil—intends to do with its replenished war chest. And the key message is that it will hike capital spending, primarily to double down on upstream expansion. The direction of the main financial metrics was overwhelmingly positive. Net income soared by 124pc, to $110bn, chiefly on average oil