Saudi Arabia-based oil behemoth Aramco’s chief executive officer has said that he expects oil demand to increase in 2021, media reports said. He said that the company is pleased that there are signs of a recovery. Hence he expects this to continue as governments and authorities around the world reopen economies.”
Recently, Aramco also a 44.4 percent slump in net profit for 2020 as a result of weak demand for oil amid the coronavirus pandemic. This means now Aramco will also cut its capital expenditure.
In this regard, Hasnain Malik, head of equity research at Tellimer told the media, “The dividend is in line with expectations, which is what holders of Aramco will care about most, but lower capex implies the company does not expect high oil prices to last for the long-term.”
Last month, it was reported that Aramco signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Kingdom’s largest telecommunication company Saudi Telecom Company (STC) and its 5G deployment partner Huawei. As per the deal, the parties will explore the application of 5G when it comes to oil and gas.
In 2020, Aramco discovered two new oil and gas fields in the Northern region of Abraq Al Toloul and Al Jof, according to Saudi Arabia’s energy minister. Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said the new oil field discovered by Aramco in Abraq al-Toloul produces nearly 3,189 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil, along with 1.1 million cubic feet of natural gas.