Eight major oil companies posted almost $93 billion in combined profit between April and June 2026, nearly double the same quarter a year earlier. The surge followed Iran's near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which the IEA calls the largest oil-supply disruption in market history. The earnings have revived political pressure for windfall taxes on oil producers.
Hormuz closure drives record earnings
Eight of the world's largest oil firms — Aramco, BP, Shell, Equinor, TotalEnergies, Eni, Chevron, and ExxonMobil — reported combined profits of over $90 billion in the second quarter, up from just below $50 billion in the same period of 2025. The jump followed the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran and Iran's subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway linking the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. That closure produced what the IEA describes as the biggest disruption of fossil fuel supplies in the market's history, pushing oil majors from the United States, Europe, and the Middle East to fill the supply gap as prices rose.
Brent crude traded around $68 a barrel at the end of February, then rose to highs of nearly $100 a barrel in May. Saudi Arabia's Aramco benefited most from the price run, posting a 34% rise in quarterly net income to over $33 billion, even after drone and missile strikes damaged its infrastructure. The company's record oil sales also made it responsible for more carbon emissions than any company in history, according to the Carbon Majors database.
BP and Chevron post multi-year highs
BP reported a second-quarter profit of $5.73 billion, almost double the year-ago figure and its highest quarterly net profit since the third quarter of 2022. Profits across all of BP's units beat forecasts. Chevron, meanwhile, posted adjusted earnings of $12 billion, with $8.2 billion from upstream operations — a 200% increase from a year earlier and its highest quarterly profit in at least six years.
According to Reuters, Chevron's chief financial officer, Eimear Bonner, said in an interview: "we continue to deliver the reliable energy that the world has needed."
Windfall tax pressure builds
The earnings have drawn criticism from environmentalists, consumers, and political leaders as governments weigh windfall taxes on the higher-than-normal profits. Global Witness fossil fuel lead Patrick Galey said the profits show it is time to make oil giants pay to repair the climate damage they are driving, according to the Guardian. Even President Donald Trump, a supporter of the oil and gas industry, criticized ExxonMobil and Chevron on August 3 for making too much money on high crude prices, telling reporters at the White House that he did not like the shortage-driven gains.
Rising fuel costs have also pushed up consumer energy bills worldwide even as producers post record earnings.
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