RIYADH: Saudi Aramco reported second-quarter adjusted net income of $33.4 billion, up 33 percent year on year, as the state oil giant weathered unprecedented disruption through the Strait of Hormuz while maintaining production and exports to global markets.
The company’s board declared a second-quarter base dividend of $21.9 billion, payable in the third quarter, even as free cash flow fell to $12.3 billion from $18.6 billion in the prior quarter, a drop Aramco attributed largely to a $13.6 billion working capital build.
Gearing rose to 6.2 percent from 4.8 percent at the end of March, though it remained broadly in line with the 6.5 percent recorded a year earlier.
The scale of the disruption behind these numbers is captured in official data from the US Energy Information Administration, which showed crude oil and petroleum liquids transiting the Strait of Hormuz fell nearly 30 percent to 14.6 million barrels a day from 20.4 million a year earlier, as the corridor, which normally carries about a fifth of the world’s oil trade, was choked by regional conflict.
Aramco President and CEO Amin Nasser said the company’s ability to keep operating through the turmoil reflected years of planning: “Despite the unprecedented supply disruption through the Strait of Hormuz, we continued to demonstrate our ability to maintain business continuity by capitalizing on our diverse asset base and multi-decade planning, including strategic infrastructure such as the East-West Pipeline, storage capacity, and export terminals.”
