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The last year of war and supply disruptions has generated record profits for the world's biggest fossil fuel companies as they thrive amid heatwaves, wildfires, and floods that all point to climate change. The political power of oil is unraveling public well‑being.
The global oil business has turned the tides of war into a financial windfall. When the United States and Israel entered into conflict with Iran in early 2024, the Strait of Hormuz-a critical artery through which about a fifth of the world's crude oil passes-was briefly closed.
Oil Giants Report Record Profits
That cut in supply raised prices worldwide and sent a shock of profit through the industry's biggest names. An August report by the Guardian detailed how, in the first full quarter after the fighting began, eight major sovereign and multinational producers-including BP, Shell, Exxon‑Mobil, Chevron, and the state‑run Saudi Aramco-almost doubled their combined earnings relative to the same period the year before.
The firms together raked in roughly ninety‑three billion dollars in profit, a figure equivalent to about seven hundred thousand euros per minute, a rate that dwarfs most other corporate earnings cycles. Aramco itself outperformed with a 34 percent surge in profits, even though missile strikes from Iranian and Houthi forces damaged some of its infrastructure. The company, according to the Carbon Majors database that tracks corporate and national emissions, remains the single biggest emitter ever recorded.
Climate Costs of Fossil Fuels
While these conglomerates celebrated record returns, the planet was suffering on multiple fronts. Europe faced a succession of heatwaves, breaking temperature records in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and the United Kingdom, which together caused roughly thirty‑six thousand excess deaths. Ireland experienced its hottest summer on record, with July being the driest month ever. Europe also endured a season of devastating wildfires, with evacuations in France and Spain reaching the largest scale seen since the Second World War.
Meanwhile, a catastrophic flash flood in Nepal, triggered by a glacier collapse, claimed more than 1,400 lives. These events starkly illustrate the climate impacts most directly tied to the fossil‑fuel industry's continued dominance. For corporations that thrive on the very product that is accelerating climate change, the timing could not be more contradictory. The same businesses that invest large sums to lobby against aggressive regulation in both domestic and international arenas are now pocketing unprecedented profits.
Political Resistance to Renewable Transition
Saudi Arabia, a leading exporter and a key player in global energy markets, has long resisted efforts to transition to renewable sources, a strategy voiced by climate activist Al Gore after last year's UN Climate Conference. In the United Kingdom, the Reform Party-an organization revealed by investigative group DeSmog to have received two‑thirds of its funding from fossil‑fuel interests-has pledged to scrap net‑zero commitments.
Its campaign rhetoric frames such policies as drags on consumers and businesses, masking a clear objective: to secure ongoing profits for the oil sector. In Ireland, which has seen its own fuel protests bring the country to a standstill, the influence of the oil industry could become more direct.
Ireland Weighs Carbon Tax Protests
At a meeting in Westmeath, organizers of the earlier protests, led by Christopher Duffy, announced a potential road blockage if demands to abolish the carbon tax and reduce fuel excise and VAT are unmet. Such a move would not only cut operational costs for transport and agricultural firms but would also create a boom in domestic fuel consumption-benefiting the broader oil industry.
The confluence of soaring profits for oil giants, severe climate disasters, and political maneuvers aimed at protecting fossil‑fuel interests paints a troubling picture of what happens when market power eclipses planetary well‑being. The stakes have never been clearer. It is a narrative of economic advantage at environmental expense, raising urgent questions about policy, accountability, and the moral obligations of those who profit from the planet's decline.
Oil Profits Climate Change Fossil Fuel Industry Global Politics Environmental Crisis
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