Saudi Arabian Oil Co (Aramco) on Tuesday declared a 3.5 percent year-on-year increase in its base dividend and launched a share repurchase program of up to $3 billion over 18 months.
The increase in investor returns comes despite declines in net profit for the fourth quarter (Q4) and full-year 2025 driven by lower crude oil prices, partly offset by higher crude sales volumes.
Q4 dividends to be paid under the new base rate, which marks the fourth consecutive year of increases, total $21.89 billion. Dividends for 2025 total $85.5 billion, the state-owned energy giant said in an online statement.
“Our disciplined capital allocation, combined with our lower-cost, adaptable and highly-reliable operations, drove strong financial performance in a year marked by price volatility”, said president and chief executive Amin H. Nasser.
Q4 2025 net income totaled $17.77 billion (SAR 66.63 billion), down from $26.94 billion for the prior three-month period and $22.34 billion for Q4 2024. Besides lower realized oil prices, $64.1 per barrel on average, higher operating costs contributed to the sequential and year-over-year declines in quarterly net earnings.
The year-on-year increase in operating costs “was mainly due to higher impairment and held for sale remeasurement losses, partially offset by lower production royalties, lower purchases and lower selling, administrative and general expenses”, Aramco said.
“The increase in impairment and held for sale remeasurement losses is primarily due to fair value losses recognized as part of a reclassification of assets and liabilities as held for sale related to SABIC’s plans to divest certain petrochemicals and engineering thermoplastics businesses.
“Lower production royalties were predominantly driven by lower crude oil prices and lower average effective royalty rate, partially offset by higher volumes sold of crude oil.
“The decrease in purchases primarily reflects the impact of lower prices of crude oil purchased and lower prices of refined and chemical products purchased, partially offset by higher volumes purchased of crude oil and higher volumes purchased of refined and chemical products.
“The decrease in selling, administrative and general expenses was primarily driven by lower freight costs and recognition of a gain compared to a loss in prior year associated with derivative instruments”.
Net profit adjusted for extraordinary or nonrecurring items landed at $25.06 billion for Q4 2025, down from $28.26 billion for Q3 2025 and $25.55 billion for Q4 2024.
Liquid production averaged 11.1 million barrels per day (MMbpd), up from 10.82 MMbpd for Q3 2025 and 10.14 MMbpd for Q4 2024.
Natural gas production averaged 10.74 billion cubic feet per day (Bcfpd), down from 12.61 Bcfpd in Q3 but up from 10.53 Bcfpd in Q4 2024.
Revenue totaled $111.01 billion for Q4 2025, down from $111.51 billion for Q3 2025 and $114.29 billion for Q4 2024.
Income before income taxes and zakat stood at $40.51 billion for Q4 2025, down from $51.79 billion for Q3 2025 and $45.94 billion for Q4 2024.
Net cash from operating activities was $40.84 billion for Q4 2025, up from $36.12 billion for Q3 2025 and $35.81 billion for Q4 2024. Free cash flow increased to $27.47 billion for Q4 2025 from $23.56 billion for Q3 2025 and $21.62 billion for Q4 2024.
ROACE, which reflects the efficiency of capital utilization and is measured by Aramco on a 12-month rolling basis, stood at 19.8 percent, compared to 19.9 percent at the end of 2024. Aramco defines ROACE as “adjusted net income before finance costs, net of adjustments and income taxes and zakat, as a percentage of average capital employed”.
Net debt stood at $18.27 billion at yearend 2025. Current and non-current borrowings totaled $96.97 billion. Aramco logged a negative $64.83 billion in cash and cash equivalents. Gearing stood at 3.8 percent at the end of Q4 2025, compared to 4.5 percent at the end of Q4 2024.
This year Aramco expects $50-55 billion in capital investment, the lower end representing a decline from last year’s $52.2 billion.
“Following another year of record oil demand in 2025, we believe ongoing investments in our operations position us well for the future”, Nasser said.
“In parallel, our ambitious gas expansion is progressing on schedule, aligning with rising domestic demand and delivering significant volumes of high-value associated liquids”.
Recently Aramco began production at Jafurah, which it calls the Middle East’s biggest unconventional gas field. The project is designed to deliver up to 2 Bcfpd of sales volume by 2030.
Estimated to hold 229 trillion cubic feet of raw gas and 75 billion stock tank barrels of condensate, Jafurah kickstarts Aramco’s gas expansion campaign, which focuses on securing domestic supply while investing in the global liquefied natural gas market, according to the company.
Production started December 2025, Aramco disclosed February 26, 2026. Besides shale gas, the project is designed to produce up to 420 MMcfpd of ethane and 630,000 bpd of liquids by the end of the decade, according to Aramco.
To contact the author, email jov.onsat@rigzone.com
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