In 2025, the Saudi energy sector demonstrated a superior ability to fortify its financial gains and navigate global market fluctuations, achieving a net profit exceeding $92.5 billion (347.2 billion riyals). Despite pressures imposed by the global supply-and-demand equation and supply chain disruptions, the financial results of listed companies revealed a strategic shift in performance. Price momentum for oil was no longer the sole driver; instead, operational efficiency and smart hedging emerged as safety valves that ensured the continuity of massive cash flows, with revenues exceeding $430 billion.
While profits recorded a relative decline of approximately 11.5 percent compared to the exceptional year of 2024, when they reached $104.62 billion (392.58 billion riyals), the results showed a positive variance for logistics and drilling companies such as "Bahri" and "ADES." This indicates a new phase of operational maturity and diversification of income sources within the region's most vital sector.
This decline in sector profits is attributed to the falling earnings of "Saudi Aramco," the heaviest weight in the Saudi market index. Other sector companies were also affected by multiple challenges, including declining revenues, lower sales, and reduced dividend distributions from investment portfolios.
Variance in Company Profits
Financial results for energy sector companies showed a variance in performance: profits rose for two companies, declined for one, and another narrowed its losses. Additionally, one company continued its losses, while another shifted to a loss after recording profits during 2024.
In detail, "Saudi Aramco" achieved the highest profit margin among sector companies, reaching $92.75 billion (348.04 billion riyals) during 2025, despite a decline of 11.64 percent compared to the previous year. The company attributed this decline to lower revenues and sales-related income, though this was partially offset by a decrease in operating costs and lower income taxes and Zakat. "Bahri" ranked second with profits of $647.58 million (2.43 billion riyals) during 2025, a growth of 0.12 percent compared to the previous year's profits of $578.29 million (2.17 billion riyals). The company attributed its profit growth to higher total quarters for the oil transport sector and improved operational performance and global freight rates.
"ADES" came in third with profits reaching $218.13 million (818.5 million riyals), achieving a growth of 2 percent compared to the previous year. The company stated that the rise in net profit reflected an increase in depreciation and interest expenses relative to revenues, in addition to gains recorded in the third quarter under "profits from equity instruments at fair value through profit or loss," the impact of which was largely dissipated by costs related to an acquisition deal.
Sector Revenues
At the revenue level for sector companies during 2025, there was a decline of approximately 4.74 percent, recording revenues of about $430.12 billion (1.61 trillion riyals) compared to $450.4 billion (1.69 trillion riyals) in 2024, a decrease of $21.44 billion (80.45 billion riyals).
Commenting on these results, Dr. Sulaiman Al-Humaid Al-Khaldi, financial market analyst and member of the Saudi Economic Association, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the energy sector is strategic and vital to the Saudi economy, and these results reflect the continued high profitability of sector companies despite the relative decline. He described this decline as "natural" following the exceptional levels of 2024, reflecting the moderation of oil prices compared to the previous year, alongside the OPEC+ alliance's commitment to production cut policies to support balance.
He noted the decline in revenues resulted from lower prices and volumes despite remaining at strong levels, as well as rising operational and investment costs for some companies, particularly in expansion and renewable energy projects. Conversely, companies like "Bahri" and "ADES Holding" showed positive performance supported by growth in demand for maritime transport and drilling services, reflecting a diversification of profitability sources within the sector.
Al-Khaldi expected the sector to remain stable in the near term with a slight inclination toward growth, supported by several factors including continued global oil supply management to support prices within a balanced range, and Aramco’s expansion into gas, clean energy, and petrochemicals, reducing reliance solely on crude oil. He also noted the improved performance of service companies (drilling and transport) with the increase in regional projects.
Over the medium to long term, he expected the future of sector companies to carry a strategic shift toward focusing on diversifying energy sources through hydrogen and renewables, enhancing operational efficiency, and reducing costs. He highlighted that companies would benefit from Saudi Vision 2030 in supporting investments and infrastructure, noting that the sector remains strong and profitable, and the current decline is a healthy correction after a historical peak, while the trend toward diversification and sustainability will be the primary driver for growth in the coming years.
Operational Factors
For his part, Mohammed Hamdi Omar, CEO of "G-World," told Asharq Al-Awsat that the economic reading of these figures indicates the Saudi energy sector has not lost its strength but has entered a more complex phase than merely achieving high profits.
He added: "We are facing a sector that is still achieving massive profitability levels exceeding 347 billion riyals, but the more important picture is that growth is no longer based on price momentum alone; it has become more sensitive to operational factors, global demand, refining margins, and the variance in performance of companies within the sector."
He explained that the reasons for the decline in sector profits "stem from the exceptional weight of 'Aramco' within the sector; it is not just a company within the sector, but the main driver of the entire financial picture, and any decline in its revenues or profits is automatically reflected in the overall index. Furthermore, the sector did not move as a single bloc; some companies benefited from improved activity or the strength of their business models, such as 'Bahri' and 'ADES,' while others faced clear operational or market pressures. This reflects that the challenge is no longer just in the sector as a whole, but in the quality of positioning within it."
Omar noted that the "decline in total sector revenues indicates that the global energy market has entered a more volatile phase, where high prices alone are no longer sufficient to ensure a balanced improvement in results. Today, operational management, the ability to hedge, diversification of income sources, and supply chain efficiency have become factors no less important than the price itself. Therefore, those who read these results as merely an annual decline in profits are oversimplifying the picture; more accurately, it is an expression of the sector's transition from a phase of easy rents to a phase of more complex operational competition."
Regarding the future financial results of energy companies, he indicated that the sector "will remain a fundamental pillar of the Saudi economy and financial market, but the difference in the coming phase will be between companies that have the ability to adapt to global volatility and those that remain captive to the price cycle. In other words, the future belongs not just to those with scale, but to those with flexibility, financial discipline, and the ability to turn volatility into opportunity."
He viewed the outlook for the coming period as "positive" at the sector level, "but more precise at the company level, as gains will not be distributed equally, but will instead gravitate toward the most efficient, integrated companies that are best able to manage risks in a global environment that remains turbulent."
