Big Oil delivered its strongest quarter since the aftermath of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with six of the world's biggest oil companies posting a combined $79.4 billion in second-quarter net income as Brent crude averaged about $104 a barrel, up more than 50 per cent year-on-year. The Iran war sent prices higher while disrupting flows through the Strait of Hormuz. However, gains made by oil were uneven. Companies farthest from the conflict captured the biggest profit leaps, while Saudi Aramco, hit closest to home, registered the largest profit but the weakest growth.
Western majors, Chevron, ExxonMobil and BP benefited from higher oil and gas prices with limited operational impact, allowing them to capture wider margins on largely uninterrupted production. Saudi Aramco, by contrast, spent the last quarter rerouting affected export routes and cut hydrocarbon output by roughly 25 per cent from the previous quarter. Shell faced a middle ground, absorbing a major hit to Qatari liquefied natural gas production while benefiting from trading and refining payoffs.
ExxonMobil
ExxonMobil posted the largest dollar profit among the majors, after net income more than doubled this quarter to $14.5 billion. Record production from the Permian Basin and continued growth in Guyana helped it benefit from higher oil prices without significant disruption. Operating cash flow reached $23.6 billion and free cash flow topped $17 billion. Its chief executive Darren Woods described the quarter as "shaped by disruption, but defined by execution." The company benefited more from the market shock rather than being directly caught in it.
Chevron
Chevron delivered the sharpest earnings rebound among the majors, with net income soaring 385 per cent, as record US output and the integration of its $53 billion Hess acquisition helped it benefit from the oil price surge. Chevron and ExxonMobil reported a combined $26.6 billion in quarterly profit, making them the biggest beneficiaries from the Iran war.
Chevron’s global production rose 20 per cent to a record 4.07 million barrels of oil equivalent a day. The company also cut debt by $8.4 billion during the quarter. The scale of Chevron's gains, alongside ExxonMobil's record profit, drew criticism from US President Donald Trump, who accused the two companies of benefiting from a supply shortage created by the conflict.
"Chevron, too much money. ExxonMobil, too much, too much money," Mr Trump told reporters on Monday, saying the companies should "give some of that back to the public" and "better cut the retail price." His comments echoed the "war profiteering" accusations previously levelled at oil majors by President Joe Biden in 2022.
Shell
Shell's net income roughly trebled to $10.8 billion, marking its strongest quarter since 2022. The numbers masked the biggest operational disruption suffered by a Western major. Missile strikes on Qatar's Ras Laffan energy hub in March affected its Pearl gas-to-liquids facility, cutting integrated gas output 31 per cent from the previous quarter. Shell holds a 30 per cent stake in QatarEnergy LNG's fourth expansion train at Ras Laffan, equivalent to 2.4 million tonnes a year of equity production. The company expects repairs to continue into the first quarter of 2027, with third-quarter guidance assuming no Qatari production. Its chief executive Wael Sawan described the disruption as a short-term setback rather than a structural shift.
Shell also faces one of the heaviest tax burdens among its peers, paying a combined 78 per cent rate on North Sea profits. This includes the standard 40 per cent levy plus a 38 per cent windfall surcharge. The tax predates the Iran war but has drawn renewed scrutiny as energy profits rise again. Five European governments are pushing for a new EU-wide levy on war-related gains.
BP
BP reported net income of $3.91 billion, up 141 per cent from a year earlier, in the first full quarter under chief executive Meg O'Neill. Its preferred underlying profit measure, which excludes one-off items, came in at $5.7 billion. Ms O'Neill described the period as one of the most disrupted in global energy markets. The company raised its dividend by 4 per cent but said upstream production fell from the previous quarter due to the impact of Middle East disruptions. Like Shell, BP remains exposed to the UK's 78 per cent windfall tax on North Sea profits.
TotalEnergies
TotalEnergies landed between the US majors, which largely avoided operational disruption, and European peers with greater exposure to the conflict. Net income rose 102 per cent to $5.4 billion. Its chief executive Patrick Pouyanné warned of "extremely volatile" conditions as fighting around the Strait of Hormuz disrupted supply. Middle East shutdowns contributed to a 4 per cent decline in output, while attacks also affected its Satorp refinery in Saudi Arabia. French lawmakers and climate groups have repeatedly called for a "superprofits" tax on TotalEnergies specifically since the war began.
Saudi Aramco
Saudi Aramco remained the most profitable company in the group, but its results reflected the cost of being closest to the conflict. Net income rose 44 per cent, the smallest gain of the six, though at $32.7 billion it still outweighed Exxon's and Chevron's combined profit of $26.6 billion. Hydrocarbon output fell to 9.46 million barrels of oil equivalent a day from 12.61 million in the first quarter. It was the largest volume loss among the majors. The company rerouted crude through its East-West pipeline to Red Sea terminals, which operated at its full 7 million barrels-a-day capacity, and is now working to expand that route's capacity further. It also faces additional risk from Yemen's Houthis enforcing a maritime blockade against Saudi-linked ships.
