Aramco CEO: Strength of financial position enhances investments and resilience

Saudi Aramco President and CEO Amin Nasser said that the current crisis, triggered by the war in the region, was unprecedented in its impact on energy markets.

Speaking in an exclusive interview  that was aired on Thursday, Nasser noted that the market has lost around 3 billion barrels of supply since the crisis began.

Nasser said that oil prices could have climbed significantly higher were it not for drawdowns from global strategic reserves as well as the role played by Aramco’s East-West pipeline in maintaining supply flows and calming markets.

He noted that China had been importing around 11 million barrels per day by sea, but this figure fell to approximately 5–6 million barrels per day in June, helping to ease pressure on the market.

Nasser explained that a return to normal conditions would drive an increase in demand of around 3 million barrels per day, including 2 million barrels to meet growth in consumption and 1 million barrels to replenish inventories depleted by countries during the crisis.

Operational Resilience

Addressing Aramco’s ability to withstand shocks, Nasser stressed that operational resilience is not built during crises, but is the result of decades of planning, investment, and preparation.

He said the government’s decision to expand the East-West pipeline in the 1980s provided a strategic oil export route that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz. He added that the pipeline’s capacity has increased from around 2 million barrels per day to its current 7 million barrels per day.

Nasser praised Aramco employees while noting that human capital is the cornerstone of resilience.

He said that the company’s employees have undergone years of training and development adding that they played “heroic” roles during the crisis in restoring damaged facilities and ensuring continued supplies to global markets.

Nasser added that the company’s advanced infrastructure, including pipelines, ports, storage facilities, and operational installations, was a key factor in maintaining business continuity, alongside local supply chains.

He explained that more than 90 percent of the materials required during the crisis were sourced from the domestic market, while local content at Aramco has reached around 70 percent.

Nasser also highlighted the role that technology has played in becoming ones of the sources of resilience.

Aramco processes more than 10 billion data points daily to manage operations, exploration, and production, as well as reduce costs and emissions, Nasser said.

He added that drones also played an important role during attacks on some facilities by assessing damage, determining response priorities, and managing firefighting operations.

Nasser explained that rapid response is one of the company’s key strengths. From the earliest moments of any incident, teams begin mobilizing equipment, materials, and maintenance crews alongside firefighting operations. This helps reduce facility restoration times from weeks or months to just hours or days.