Oil Demand Remains Robust Amid Russian Sanctions: Aramco CEO

Riyadh: Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser stated Tuesday that global crude oil demand is holding strong, even prior to recent US and UK sanctions on major Russian producers Rosneft and Lukoil, with Chinese imports remaining healthy.

Speaking at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference, Nasser urged caution on immediate market impacts: "Right now we have to wait and see what will happen with the sanctions," he said when queried on oil prices. The penalties, imposed by President Donald Trump on October 22 and by Britain a week earlier, target the two firms—Lukoil accounting for about 2% of worldwide output—along with 44 shadow fleet tankers to curb Moscow's energy revenues.

Nasser also defended hydrocarbons' enduring role in the energy transition, citing policy reversals: "We went through a period where everyone said renewables and alternatives and no need for oil and gas, now you can see a lot of U-turns, a lot of shifts." This aligns with Trump's second-term push to prioritise fossil fuels over prior green initiatives.

The FII draws global leaders like Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Colombian President Gustavo Petro, BlackRock's Larry Fink, JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon, Citi's Jane Fraser, Intel's Lip-Bu Tan, and TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne. Aramco is ramping up digital efforts, committing nearly $2 billion to subsidiary Aramco Digital over three years after unlocking $6 billion in value from prior tech outlays.