Saudi Aramco

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Saudi ARAMCO
ISINSA14TG012N13 Edit this on Wikidata
Industryextraction of crude petroleum and natural gas Edit this on Wikidata
FoundedMay 5, 1933 (1933-29-05)
HeadquartersDhahran, Saudi Arabia
Key people
Amin H. Nasser (President, CEO)
Revenue2,006,955,000,000 Saudi riyal (2022) Edit this on Wikidata
1,144,077,000,000 Saudi riyal (2022) Edit this on Wikidata
604,005,000,000 Saudi riyal (2022) Edit this on Wikidata
Total assets1,494,126,000,000 Saudi riyal (2019) Edit this on Wikidata
Number of employees
79,000 (2019) Edit this on Wikidata
Websitearamco.com

ARAMCO is a Saudi Arabian Oil Company, with its roots in 1933.[1] It is also known as Saudi Aramco or the Saudi Arabian Oil Group. It is mainly state-owned, and its base is in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. At present, Aramco is considered the largest oil producer company[2] and has a strong presence in the energy markets of Asia, Europe, and North America.

History[change | change source]

In 1933, Saudi Arabia signed an agreement with the Standard Oil Company of California (SOCAL), that resulted in the creation of the California Arabian Standard Oil Company (CASOC). This was a concession agreement. The company started its drilling works two years later.[3] In 1938, their efforts started paying off in finding oil, and other US companies joined in. By the late 1940s, the company was hitting milestones and establishing its name in the field and had expanded across Saudi Arabia quickly. By 1950, Aramco was owned by four companies and had its base in New York, United States.[4] In 1952, the headquarters moved to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.

In 1950 Aramco opened a pipeline from Saudi Arabia to Lebanon, which was closed in 1983. Two years prior to that, Aramco opened another pipeline to the Arabian-Persian Gulf.[5] Aramco has built the longest pipeline in the world, named “the Trans-Arabian Pipeline.”

In 1944 the company was renamed from California Arabian Standard Oil Company to Arabian-American Oil Company, hence the acronym ARAMCO.[6] Under the rule of King Faisal, and in the 1970s, Saudi Arabia bought up to 60% of the American, at the time, oil company.[7] In 1980s, Saudi Arabia bought the remaining 40% of the company and changed its name to Saudi Aramco.[7] In 1989, the company changed its identity to a petroleum business. [1] From the 1990s and after, Aramco created a global network of allies and partners, while it kept growing in production and profits. The company has also invested in research and development, in an attempt to expand its production capabilities.

In 2019 and a couple of months before the launch of the company's IPO, Aramco’s largest facility, in Abqaiq, was under attack, damaging its production. However, the company was rather quick to recover, as within weeks it fully restored its production capacity.[5]

As a state-owned company, Saudi Aramco pays a tax rate of 50% to the government of Saudi Arabia.[2] This tax rate was higher, up to 85%, but was changed in 2017.

In 2022, Houthi rebels from Yemen attacked an oil depot in the city of Jeddah and other important locations in the city of Riyadh with rockets and drone strikes. The oil depot in Jeddah that was hit stored diesel, petrol, and jet fuel. This depot contained more than 25 percent of all supplies of Saudi Arabia. This attack was because of Saudi Arabia’s battle against the Houthis since 2015.[8]

Saudi Aramco's IPO[change | change source]

In 2017, Aramco decided to open an Initial Public Offering, IPO, which had many delays and was set into motion two years later. The company's IPO raised $25.6 billion, selling three billion shares. The amount raised by the IPO was only the 1.5% of the value of Saudi Aramco.[2] Aramco’s IPO was not as successful as the company would have hoped, but it is the largest IPO to be launched.

The future[change | change source]

Looking into the future, Aramco wants to change the resources it has. This will add new flows of value for the company and Saudi Arabia. Saudi Aramco's goal is to remain a worldwide supplier, whom people trust.[1]

Operations[change | change source]

In 2021, Saudi Arabia possessed around 17 percent of the world’s petroleum reserves. Its headquarters are in Dhahran, which lays in the East of Saudi Arabia.

ARAMCO produces five types of Arabian crude oil: Arabian Super Light, Arabian Extra Light, Arabian Light, Arabian Medium, and Arabian Heavy. ARAMCO possessed liquids reserves of 260.2 billion barrels of oil in 2017.[9] These liquid reserves have a reserve life of around 54 years. ARAMCO produced 10.3 million barrels of crude oil every day in 2018. In 2018, ARAMCO also produced 1.1 million barrels of natural gas liquids and 8.9 billion standard cubic feet per day of natural gas. This makes ARAMCO the biggest oil company of the world. [10] ARAMCO made a profit of $161 billion in 2022.[11]

Since the first oil discovery at the Dammam No. 7 well in 1938, a new drilling technique has been created. This new technique looks at the geological structure underneath the surface of the earth. This helps ARAMCO find new potential locations of oil reservoirs. [12]

Corporate governance[change | change source]

ARAMCO is managed by a Board of Directors and supervised by a Board of 11 Directors. This Board oversees ARAMCO and guides the business and affairs of ARAMCO. [9]

Board of Directors[change | change source]

  • H.E. Yasir O. Al-Rumayyan (chairman), non-executive director, director of ARAMCO since 2016.
  • H.E. Dr. Ibrahim A. Al-Assaf (deputy chairman), non-executive director, director of ARAMCO since 1999.
  • H.E. Mohammed A. Al-Jadaan (director), non-executive director, director of ARAMCO since 2018.
  • H.E. Mohammad M. Al-Tuwaijri (director), non-executive director, director of ARAMCO since 2018.
  • Mr. Andrew N. Liveris (director), Independent Non-executive Director.
  • Ms. Lynn Laverty Elsenhans (director), Independent Non-executive Director. She has worked as an independent Director of ARAMCO since 2018. Mr. Peter L. Cella (director) Independent Non-executive Director. He has worked as an independent Director of ARAMCO since 2018.
  • Mr. Mark A. Weinberger (director) Independent Non-executive Director. He has served as an independent Director of the Company since 2020.
  • Mr. Stuart T. Gulliver (Director) Independent Non-executive Director. He has worked as an independent Director of ARAMCO since 2021.
  • Mr. Khalid H. Al-Dabbagh (Director) Non-executive Director. He has worked as a Director of ARAMCO since 2021.
  • Mr. Amin H. Nasser (Director) President and Chief Executive Officer Executive Director. He has worked as the President and Chief Executive Officer of ARAMCO since 2015.[9]

Controversies[change | change source]

2007 Haradh-Othmaniya gas pipeline explosion[change | change source]

On November 19, 2007, the Haradh-Othmaniya gas pipeline was on fire. The fire started 30 km from the Hawiyah gas plant. The Hawiyah gas plant was opened in October 2002. It was the first location where only non-associated gas would be developed. 28 people were killed by the fire.[13]

Treatment of workers[change | change source]

In December 2020, an article of the newspaper The Financial Times was published. It discusses bad treatment of workers who were taken advantage of by ARAMCO. More specifically, it talks about the refusal of medical treatment of one of the foreign workers for ARAMCO, Alwyn Whitcher, which led to his death. The article goes on to discuss other foreign employees of ARAMCO who were mistreated. Five former employees of ARAMCO talk about their mistreatment while working for ARAMCO. One employee brings up a work environment of fear and intimidation. Another former employee mentions racism and bullying.[14]

Controversies around the 2019 IPO[change | change source]

To reach the 2 trillion U.S. dollar goal of the IPO of ARAMCO, many rich Saudi families were forced and bullied into investing in ARAMCO’s IPO. A lot of these families were held against their will in the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh in 2017 and 2018. This was part of a governmental action to crush corruption in Saudi Arabia. These actions were later denied by Saudi state officials.[15]

References[change | change source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Our history". www.aramco.com. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "What Is Saudi Aramco? Its History, IPO, and Financials". Investopedia. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
  3. ↑ Al-Rasheed, Madawi; Vitalis, Robert (2004). "Aramco World: Business and Culture on the Arabian Oil Frontier". Counter-Narratives: History, Contemporary Society, and Politics in Saudi Arabia and Yemen. New York: Palgrave macmillan. pp. 151–181. ISBN 978-1-349-52779-3.
  4. ↑ "Our history". americas.aramco.com. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Britannica Money". www.britannica.com. 2024-05-08. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
  6. ↑ MEED EDITORIAL (13 January 2008). "Saudi Aramco: A timeline". MEED Middle East Business Intelligence. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Σακκάς, Γιάννης Δ. (2018). Οι Άραβες στη νεότερη και σύγχρονη εποχή: Ιστορία και κοινωνία. Αθήνα: Εκδόσεις Πατάκη. ISBN 978-960-16-0519-7.
  8. ↑ "Saudi Aramco's Jeddah oil depot hit by Houthi attack". Al Jazeera. 25 March 2022. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "Saudi Aramco Annual Report 2023" (PDF).
  10. ↑ "Factbox: Inside Saudi Aramco's oil operations". Reuters. 15 September 2019. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  11. ↑ Gambrell, Jon (10 March 2024). "Aramco announces $121 billion profit in 2023, Saudi oil giant's 2nd highest on record".
  12. ↑ "Exploration". www.aramco.com. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  13. ↑ "Explosion in Aramco Gas Pipeline Kills 28". Arab News. 2007-11-19. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  14. ↑ Sheppard, David (2020-12-10). "Missiles, bullying claims, a tragic death: what's going on at Saudi Aramco?". Financial Times. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  15. ↑ "Saudi Arabia 'bullies' wealthy families to pump cash into oil IPO". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
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