Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Aramco) reported an adjusted net profit of approximately $28 billion for the three months ended 30 September 2025, surpassing analyst expectations of about $26.5 billion. Despite a year-on-year net income decline of 2.3 per cent to 101.02 billion Saudi riyals (approximately $26.94 billion), the company emphasised the outcome as a sign of resilience amid a changing energy market.

The company attributed the revenue headwinds principally to lower oil and product prices, as global supply increased and crude benchmarks such as Brent and West Texas Intermediate saw repeated monthly falls in October. Still, Aramco’s ability to outperform consensus estimates was viewed as positive for the Kingdom’s fiscal position and its role as a major oil exporter.

In a strategic update, Aramco raised its 2030 sales gas-production capacity target, saying it now expects output to reach roughly 80 per cent above 2021 levels—up from the previous target of 60 per cent. The company indicated this expansion is driven in part by its unconventional gas project at Jafurah and escalating demand tied to data-centres, electric-vehicle growth and broader energy-transition infrastructure.

The results arrive amid heightened activity by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) to unwind past voluntary production cuts, and a backdrop of softened global oil-prices that pose budget-pressure risks for the Kingdom’s widely publicised economic-diversification agenda. Aramco signalled it retains significant capacity to increase output swiftly, reinforcing its role as a cornerstone of Saudi Arabia’s energy strategy and budgetary foundation.

For Saudi Arabia, the quarter’s performance helps underpin government revenues and the ambitious Vision 2030 reform agenda, even as lower oil prices and global uncertainty warrant disciplined capital and spending management. Analysts note that while Aramco’s profitability remains robust, maintaining momentum will hinge on cost control, demand resilience and successful execution of its gas-growth and value-chain diversification objectives.