Nine big oil firms on track to share more than £95bn profit two quarters in a row
The world's biggest oil companies are on track to amass profits of more than $95bn in the third quarter as the war in the Middle East drives up fossil fuel prices.
The windfall war profits have sparked calls for oil corporations such as Saudi Aramco and BP to pay for environmental damage and help the world transition towards renewable energy. Analysis by the investment broker AJ Bell has found that nine of the biggest listed oil producers are on course to make more than $95bn in the three months to the end of September.
The windfall came seven months after the US-Israel war on Iran caused a surge in global oil prices to highs above $126 a barrel, and followed a second quarter in which the same businesses made $96bn in profit. The companies have used the biggest disruption of fossil fuel supplies in the market's history to bolster their profits.
Record profits amid conflict
Saudi Arabia's state-owned Aramco is expected to top the profits chart for the third quarter. Analysts anticipate the $1.7tn company to report a 7% increase in its quarterly net income to $30bn, even though it was targeted by Iran-backed Houthi forces. Aramco's fossil fuel production has made it responsible for more carbon emissions than any company in history, according to the database Carbon Majors.
The London-listed BP published its results for the July to September period last week, reporting quarterly profits of $8.46bn – its biggest since 2008. The industry's profits have been driven higher by refining divisions, which have capitalized on higher prices and made up for a supply shortfall after the Iran war hit shipments through the strait of Hormuz.
The big oil companies 'are raking in enormous profits while millions of people struggle to afford their energy bills and the planet burns'.
Calls for action and accountability
Campaigners have criticized the industry for prioritizing extraction over renewable energy solutions. 'Instead of investing in cheap, homegrown renewables that would drive down bills, strengthen energy security and create new jobs, the fossil fuel industry is fighting for permission to extract even more oil and gas,' said Mike Childs.
Robin Wells, the director of the climate activism organisation Fossil Free London, questioned why the UK government continued to subsidise an industry that was making billions in profit each quarter. 'The oil lobby is pushing hard right now for more drilling, even adopting the tactics of grassroots campaigners by holding banners in Parliament Square,' he said.
As they rake in billions they want billions more in tax breaks to develop Rosebank – an oilfield that won't lower our energy bills by a single penny, because the oil will be exported and sold for the profit of a select few shareholders.
Policy dilemmas and future decisions
The UK energy secretary, Miatta Fahnbulleh, is weighing up whether to allow drilling in the Rosebank oilfield in the North Sea after approving a licence for the less controversial Jackdaw gasfield in October. Experts estimate Rosebank could emit 1m additional tonnes of carbon dioxide a year by 2042, against an overall projected UK target of 90m tonnes.
A decision to approve the oilfield would be met with dismay from climate campaigners and some Labour backbenchers who view it as a step away from prioritising net zero. Shell and Saudi Aramco declined to comment. A spokesperson for BP pointed to comments from its chief executive, Meg O'Neill, highlighting the company's role in responding to the global energy crisis.
Eni defended its profits, stating they resulted from 'an effective operational and financial management model' that enables the company to develop new hydrocarbon resources to meet global demand. They added that Eni had expanded its energy transition business, including renewables.
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