Top 10 Oil Producing Companies of 2012

In 2012, oil global production estimates climbed to somewhere in the area of 75.72 million barrels per day, almost 3 percent higher than 2011. According to Oil and Gas Journal, the top producing countries of oil in 2012 included Russia with an average production of 10.45 million bpd, Saudi Arabia with 9.96 million bpd and the US with an average of 6.33 million bpd.

But as far as the top producing companies, the story is a little different. Below are the top 10 oil  producing companies of 2012, ranked by daily production.

Saudi Arabian Oil Co.

Saudi Arabian Oil Co. was the world’s top producer in 2012, with a daily production of 12.5 million barrels per day (bpd) and more than $1 billion a day in revenues. The company supplies more than 10 percent of global oil demand with  refineries and marketing in other countries, such as Japan, China, South Korea and the U.S., as well as domestic distribution. Fifty-five percent of Saudi Arabian Oil Co’s crude oil is exported to the Far East.

Gazprom (MCX:GAZP)

Russia’s Gazprom produced 9.7 million bpd in 2012. The publicly-traded company profits more than $40 billion a year. It is engaged in the operation of natural gas pipelines and supply to European companies in addition to oil production and refining. Gazprom is also involved in energy generation and sales. Its expansion activities in recent years have involved purchasing other companies and creating an LLC for investors.

National Iranian Oil Co.

Last year, state-owned National Iranian Oil Co. produced 6.4 million bpd with an estimated 137 billion barrels of in-place reserves, as well as large reserves of natural gas.National Iranian Oil Co. is active both domestically and as an exporter across the world. While Iran has had little exploration activity over the past 30 years, firms from many countries have signed development agreements with the company.

ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM)

ExxonMobil produced 5.3 million bpd in 2012. The company manufactures and markets commodity petrochemicals, and has many divisions and affiliate organizations. It is also heavily involved in exploration for and production of crude oil and natural gas. The company and its divisions operate and market products all over the world. In 2012, it had $40 billion in annual profits and $400 billion in annual sales. Its market cap is $389.80 billion.

PetroChina (NYSE:PTR)

PetroChina is the largest of China’s three state-owned oil companies. In 2012, it produced 4.4 million bpd. The company is mainly involved in the production and sale of oil and gas-related products. The company explores, develops, produces and sells crude oil and natural gas, and refines crude oil and petroleum products. Its major products include gasoline, diesel, kerosene, synthetic resin, synthetic fiber raw materials, synthetic rubber and urea. It is also involved in the retail of refined oil and international trading of petroleum and natural gas.

BP (NYSE:BP,LSE:BP)

In 2012, BP produced 4.1 million bpd. Formerly British Petroleum, BP operates in exploration and production as well as refining and marketing. It is involved in three main businesses: fuels, lubricants, and petrochemicals. BP operates in many countries and has several subsidiaries that take care of distribution and sales abroad. It also has interest in many oil companies around the world, including Russia’s OAO Neftyanaya Kompaniya Rosneft.

Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS.A)

Royal Dutch Shell, commonly known as Shell, produced 3.9 million bpd in 2012. It was incorporated in its current form in February 2002. It operates in three segments – upstream involves searching for and recovering crude oil and natural gas, its liquefication and transportation, and the extraction of bitumen from oil sands; downstream comprises manufacturing, distribution and marketing activities as well as alternate energies; and corporate involves support functions.

Petróleos Mexicanos

Mexico’s state-owned Petróleos Mexicanos, known as PEMEX, produced 3.6 million bpd in 2012. The company fuels Mexico’s economy to a remarkable degree, accounting for 40 percent of the government’s revenues and approximately 7 percent of its export earnings. Its operations range from exploration to petrochemicals. It has a subsidiary company that handles its foreign trading operations. President Enrique Peña Nieto has made it a key part of his mission to open PEMEX to foreign investment.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX)

Chevron produced 3.5 million bpd in 2012. It has many subsidiaries and affiliates, to which it provides administrative, financial, management and technology support. Its subsidiaries operate all over the world and engage in petroleum operations, mining activities and energy services, among other endeavors. The company’s subsidiaries explore for, develop and produce crude oil and natural gas, as well as process, refine and transport it. They are also involved in marketing oil and commodity petrochemicals.

Kuwait Petroleum Corp.

Kuwait Petroleum Corp produced 3.2 million bpd in 2012. It is a state-owned conglomerate that is one of the world’s largest integrated oil concerns. It has subsidiaries that are involved in all aspects of the oil and gas industry, from exploration and development to petrochemical production. Its reported estimated oil and gas reserves are 104 billion barrels of oil and 1.8 trillion cubic meters of natural gas. The company primarily exports to Western Europe.