Last Updated: October 11, 2023   |   Next Update: October 2024   |  
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Overview

Table 1. Saudi Arabia’s energy overview, 2021
  Crude oil and other petroleum liquids Natural gas Coal Nuclear  Hydro  Other renewables Total 
Primary energy consumption (quads) 4.9 4.3 0.0 0.0   0.0 9.2
Primary energy consumption (percentage) 53% 47% 0% 0%   0% 100%
Primary energy production (quads) 22.3 4.3 0.0 0.0   0.0 26.6
Primary energy production (percentage) 84% 16% 0% 0%   0% 100%
Electricity generation (terawatthours) 147.4 218.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.7 366.7
Electricity generation (percentage) 40% 60% 0% 0% 0% 0% 100%
Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), International Energy Statistics database and Energy Institute, Statistical Review of World Energy
Note: We aggregate hydroelectricity and renewables as other renewables for primary energy production and consumption. We aggregate crude oil and other petroleum liquids, natural gas, and coal fuel sources as fossil fuel-derived fuel sources for electricity generation. Quads=quadrillion British thermal units, TWh=terawatthours.

Related links

Figure 1. Map of Saudi Arabia
Map of Saudi Arabia

Data source: U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, CIA World Factbook-Saudi Arabia

Petroleum and other liquids

Figure 2. Total annual liquid fuels production and consumption in Saudi Arabia, 2013-2022
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Table 2. Crude oil grades from Saudi Arabia
  API gravity index Sulfur content Percentage of crude oil reserves
Arabian Heavy Less than 29 More than 2.9% 35%
Arabian Medium 29 to 32 2.2% to 2.9% 17%
Arabian Light 32 to 36 1.3% to 2.2% 34%
Arabian Extra Light 37 to 40 0.5% to 1.3% 13%
Arabian Super Light More than 40 Less than 0.5% 1%
Data source: Saudia Aramco
Figure 3. Map of major oil and natural gas fields in Saudi Arabia
Map of Saudi Arabia

Data sources: Saudi Aramco, Esri, HERE Technologies, Garmin, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organizations, U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations, U.S. Geological Survey, Rystad Energy

Table 3. Top oil field development projects in Saudi Arabia, 2023
Oil field Location Type Pre-existing capacity (thousand barrels per day) Additional capacity (thousand barrels per day) Total capacity (thousand barrels per day) Expected completion year
Safaniya Northeastern coast Offshore 1,200 700 1,900 2027
Zuluf Northeastern coast Offshore 800 600 1,400 2026
Marjan Northeastern coast Offshore 500 300 800 2025
Berri Eastern coast Offshore and onshore 250 250 500 2025

Data sources: Energy Intelligence, Saudia Aramco, Oil & Gas Journal, and Atlantic Council
Note: Saudi Aramco expects Marjan to provide an additional 2.6 billion cubic feet per day in natural gas production and 360,000 barrels per day in ethane and natural gas liquids (NGLs).

Table 4. Saudi Aramco refining operations, 2021
Refinery Location Capacity thousand barrels per day Throughout thousand barrels per day Utilization Economic interest Partner
Jazan Saudi Arabia 400 200 50% 100% N/A
Ras Tanura Saudi Arabia 550 402 73% 100% N/A
Yanbu Saudi Arabia 250 216 86% 100% N/A
Riyadh Saudi Arabia 130 84 65% 100% N/A
SASREF Saudi Arabia 305 250 82% 100% N/A
SATORP Saudi Arabia 440 396 90% 63% N/A
YASREF Saudi Arabia 430 338 79% 63% Sinopec
SAMREF Saudi Arabia 400 316 79% 50% ExxonMobil
Petro Rabigh Saudi Arabia 400 273 68% 38% Sumitomo
Domestic total   3,305 2,475 75%    
Motiva (Port Arthur) United States 635 539 85% 1 N/A
S-Oil South Korea 669 637 95% 62% S-Oil
Hyundai Oilbank South Korea 690 -- -- 17% Hyundai Oilbank
FREP China 280 207 74% 25% Sinopec, ExxonMobil
Idemitsu Kosan Japan 945 -- -- 8% Idemitsu Kosan
PRefChem Malaysia 300 48 16% 50% Petronas
International total   3,519 1,431 76%    

Data sources: Saudi Aramco and Middle East Economic Survey
Note: Throughput and utilization for Hyundai Oilbank and Idemitsu Kosan are not publicly available and are excluded from the total international utlization calculation. N/A=not applicable, --=not available.

Natural gas

  • Saudi Arabia meets natural gas consumption with domestic production and does not import natural gas. Natural gas production and consumption increased 2% from 4.0 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) in 2020 to 4.1 Tcf in 2021 (Figure 4).16 Saudi Aramco expects domestic demand for natural gas to grow 3.7% per year from 2021 to 2030 because of increased demand for natural gas-fired power generation.17
  • Associated natural gas production in Saudi Arabia changes alongside increases or decreases in crude oil production, and it was 52% of Saudi Arabia’s total natural gas production in 2022 (Figure 5).18 Saudi Arabia flared 66 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of associated natural gas in 2022 at an average intensity of 17 cubic feet per barrel (cf/b) of oil produced. The World Bank ranks Saudi Arabia as the 13th-largest natural gas flaring country for 2022, but the average intensity at which Saudi Arabia flared its natural gas was well below that of other top oil-producing countries.19
  • Nonassociated natural gas is a rising proportion of Saudi Arabia’s total natural gas production, increasing from 22% in 2012 to 48% in 2022 (Figure 5). Increased production of nonassociated natural gas allows Saudi Arabia to meet domestic natural gas demand despite shifts in crude oil production that limit associated natural gas output. For example, the proportion of nonassociated natural gas peaked at 52% of Saudi Arabia’s total consumption in 2020 at a time when crude oil production declined significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic (Figure 5).20
  • Jafurah, the largest unconventional natural gas field in Saudi Arabia, contains 200 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) in estimated reserves of natural gas.21 Located east of Ghawar, Jafurah is currently under development and is scheduled to begin production of nonassociated natural gas in 2025 and provide 2.0 Bcf/d of natural gas by 2030 (Figure 3).22
  • Saudi Arabia seeks to begin exporting natural gas as part of Vision 2030.23 According to a 2016 analysis of Vision 2030’s natural gas development plans, Jadwa Investments estimates that average year-over-year increases in production will need to exceed 6.6% between 2020 and 2029 for Saudi Arabia to viably export natural gas.24
Figure 4. Total annual dry natural gas production and consumption in Saudi Arabia, 2012-2021
Figure 5. Associated and nonassociated natural gas production in Saudi Arabia, 2012-2022

Electricity

  • Saudi Arabia generated an estimated 374 terawatthours (TWh) of electricity in 2022, up 2% from 367 TWh in 2021.25 In 2022, Saudi Arabia generated 67% of its electricity from natural gas (up from 60% in 2021), 33% from oil (down from 40%), and less than 1% from renewables (the same as in 2021) (Figure 6).26
  • Increased electricity demand during the summer months in Saudi Arabia drove oil-fired power generation (crude oil and fuel oil) up 9% year over year, increasing from 1.0 million b/d in 2021 to 1.1 million b/d in 2022 (Figure 7).27 Oil-fired power generation supplements Saudi Arabia’s natural gas-fired power to help meet demand for electricity. Despite minimal offsets from increased capacity to generate electricity from renewables and nonassociated natural gas, the demand for oil-fired power generation increased following declines in crude oil production and associated natural gas production.28
  • Doosan Enerbility and Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) are constructing the Jafurah Cogeneration Plant east of Riyadh, which is scheduled to come online in 2025.29 The plant’s production capacity, 320 megawatts, will supply power to the Jafurah natural gas field, which will ultimately supply natural gas for domestic electric power generation, water desalination, and steel production throughout Saudi Arabia.30
  • Water desalination accounted for 6% of electricity consumption in Saudi Arabia in 2020, and production of desalinated water in Saudi Arabia doubled from 1.1 billion cubic meters (Bcm) in 2010 to 2.2 Bcm in 2021.31 Saudi Arabia’s Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) is upgrading multiple desalination plants to reduce their energy consumption by 2024. New requirements for these plants call for less than 3 kilowatthours (kWh) per cubic meter of desalinated water, instead of the traditional 15 kWh. In total, the desalination plants receiving these upgrades account for 94% of Saudi Arabia’s desalinated water production.32
  • Renewable energy sources made up less than 1% of electricity generation in Saudi Arabia from 2018 to 2022 (Figure 6).33 The Saudi National Renewable Energy Program (NREP) intends to increase this share to 50% by 2030 through several solar and wind projects.34 Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Statistics reported 13 NREP projects as underway in 2020 (Table 5), and the Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) announced a series of new agreements for wind projects and solar projects through 2022 and 2023 (Tables 6).35 Additional updates for major projects include:
    • The Dumat Al Jandal wind farm began generating power in August 2021. It has the largest capacity of any wind farm in the Middle East, and it is the first wind farm in Saudi Arabia.36
    • The Sakaka solar project started operations in June 2021; it is the first utility-scale solar power project in Saudi Arabia.37
    • The Rabigh solar project in Makkah Province began operations in April 2023.38
    • Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power and Water and Electricity Holding Company signed agreements for Al-Shuaiba 2 in November 2022; it will have the largest capacity of any single-site solar power plant in the world.39
Figure 6. Electric power generation by fuel type in Saudi Arabia, 2016-2022
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Figure 7. Total monthly oil burn in Saudi Arabia, 2013-2023
figure data
Table 5. Saudi Arabia National Renewable Energy Program (NREP) projects, 2020
Project Type of project Project capacity megawatts
Sudair Solar 1,500
Rass Solar 700
Al-Shuaiba Solar 600
Dumat Al-Jandal Wind energy 400
Jeddah Solar 300
Rabigh Solar 300
Saad Solar 300
Sakakah Solar 300
Qurayyat Solar 200
Wadi ad-Dawasir Solar 120
Layla Solar 80
Medina Solar 50
Rafha Solar 20
Data source: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, General Authority for Statistics
Table 6. Announced renewable energy projects in Saudi Arabia, 2022-2023
Project Type of project Project capacity megawatts
Al-Shuaibah 2 Solar 2,060
Rass 2 Solar 2,000
Al-Kahfa Solar 1,425
Saad 2 Solar 1,125
Al-Henekiyah Solar 1,100
Yanbu Wind energy 700
Al-Ghat Wind energy 600
Waad Al-Shamal Wind energy 500
Tubarjal Solar 400
Data source: Saudi Press Agency

Energy Trade

  • Saudi Arabia exported an estimated 7.3 million b/d of crude oil in 2022, up 13% from 6.5 million b/d in 2021 as a result of increased annual crude oil production. Saudi Arabia’s crude oil exports were 34% of all 2022 exports from OPEC members (Figure 8).41
  • According to customs data from Global Trade Tracker, countries in Asia were Saudi Arabia’s primary export market for crude oil and condensate. Countries in Asia received 79% of Saudi Arabia’s total annual exports in 2022, up from 72% in 2018 and subsequent years of steady year-over-year increases (Figure 9). China is Saudi Arabia’s top crude oil importer, accounting for 25% of 2022 exports, followed by Japan, South Korea, and India (Figure 10).42
  • Saudi Arabia imported 257,000 b/d of fuel oil in the first half of 2023, up 51% year over year from 171,000 b/d in the first half of 2022, driven by increased imports from Russia (Figure 11). Imports of fuel oil from Russia initially increased during the summer of 2022 to meet demand for power generation in Saudi Arabia. Substantially higher imports began in February 2023 because of discounted prices for fuel oil from Russia.43
Figure 8. Total annual exports of crude oil andcondensate from Saudi Arabia and OPEC, 2012-2021
Figure 9. Saudi Arabia crude oil exports by region and country, 2022
Figure 10. Top five importers of crude oil from Saudi Arabia, 2018-2022
Figure 11. Total monthly fuel oil imports in Saudi Arabia, 2020-2023

Endnotes

  1. U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Statistics (accessed June 2023); Energy Institute, Statistical Review of World Energy, 2023.
  2. Maha El Dahan and Ahmad Ghaddar, Reuters, “Why are OPEC+ supply cuts failing to boost oil prices?,“ July 4, 2023; Alex Lawler, Reuters, “OPEC oil output falls on Saudi cut and Nigerian outage, Reuters survey finds,“ July 31, 2023.
  3. U.S. Energy Information Administration, Today in Energy, “EIA forecasts crude oil prices will increase through 2024 as demand rises above supply,“ July 19, 2023; Maha El Dahan and Ahmed Elimam, Reuters, “Saudi Arabia extends 1 million barrel-per-day oil cut, may deepen it in future,“ August 3, 2023. Maha El Dahan and Yousef Saba, Reuters, “Saudi Arabia, Russia extend voluntary oil cuts to year-end, markets jump,“ September 5, 2023.
  4. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Vision 2030 (accessed July 2023).
  5. Saudi Aramco, “Jafurah: the jewel of our unconventional gas program,“ December 29, 2022; Saudi Aramco, Annual Report 2022, March 10, 2023; Thomas Everill, The Borgen Project, “Recent Developments for Renewable Energy in Saudi Arabia,“ January 7, 2023; International Trade Administration, “Saudi Arabia Renewable Energy,“ September 13, 2021; Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Vision 2030 (accessed July 2023).
  6. U.S. Energy Information Administration, Short-Term Energy Outlook Data Browser (accessed August 2023);
  7. U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Statistics (accessed July 2023); Saudi Aramco, Annual Report 2022, March 10, 2023.
  8. Oil & Gas Journal, “OPEC+ surprises markets with voluntary cuts of 1.15 million b/d,“ April 3, 2023.
  9. Conglin Xu, Oil & Gas Journal, “Saudi Arabia to further reduce output as OPEC+ sticks to 2023 production cut target,“ June 5, 2023; U.S. Energy Information Administration, Today in Energy, “EIA forecasts crude oil prices will increase through 2024 as demand rises above supply,“ July 19, 2023. Maha El Dahan and Yousef Saba, Reuters, “Saudi Arabia, Russia extend voluntary oil cuts to year-end, markets jump,“ September 5, 2023.
  10. Saudi Aramco, Base Prospectus, June 7, 2021; U.S. Energy Information Administration, Today in Energy, “Changing quality mix is affecting crude oil price differentials and refining decisions,“ September 21, 2017.
  11. Saudi Aramco, Annual Report 2022, March 10, 2023; Dhahran A. Bakr, Energy Intelligence, “Aramco Sets Out Project Plans for Next Three Years,“ February 3, 2023; Christopher E. Smith, Oil & Gas Journal, “Aramco advancing crude development projects to boost output by 1.5 million b/d,“ March 13, 2023; Alex Lawler, Reuters, “Explainer: How much extra oil can Saudi Arabia pump?“ July 18, 2022.
  12. Oil & Gas Journal, Worldwide Look at Reserves and Production, December 5, 2022.
  13. William Pentland, Forbes, “World’s Five Largest Offshore Oil Fields,“ September 7, 2013; Oil & Gas Middle East, “Revealed: 5 largest oilfields in the Middle East,“ April 3, 2023; Saudi Aramco, Products: Oil Production (accessed August 2023).
  14. U.S. Energy Information Administration, Short-Term Energy Outlook, July 2023; U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Statistics (accessed July 2023).
  15. Saudi Aramco, Base Prospectus, June 7, 2021; Oil & Gas Journal, Worldwide, US Refinery Survey-Capacities as of Jan. 1, 2023, Jan 30, 2023, page 17; Jeslyn Lerh and Trixie Sher Li Yap, Reuters, “Saudi Aramco to ramp up Jizan fuel output, sources say,“ March 27, 2023; Jamie Ingram, Middle East Economic Survey, “Aramco CEO: Jazan Refinery Throughputs Hit 4000,000 B/D Capacity?,“ March 17, 2023.
  16. U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Statistics (accessed July 2023).
  17. Saudi Aramco, Base Prospectus, June 7, 2021.
  18. Rystad Energy UCube (accessed June 2023).
  19. World Bank, Global Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership (GGFR), Global Gas Flaring Tracker; Saudi Aramco, “Saudi Aramco Joins World Bank’s Initiative: Zero Routine Flaring by 2030,“ November 6, 2019.
  20. Rystad Energy UCube (accessed June 2023).
  21. Saudi Aramco, “Jafurah: the jewel of our unconventional gas program,“ December 29, 2022.
  22. Saudi Aramco, Annual Report 2022, March 10, 2023.
  23. Rania El Gamal, Reuters, “Saudi Aramco aims to become gas exporter with $150 billion investment drive,“ November 26, 2018; Rania El Gamal, Reuters, “Saudi Arabia aims to export 3 bln cubic feet/day of gas before 2030,“ February 26, 2019.
  24. Fahad M. Alturki and Asad Kahn, Jadwa Investments, Natural Gas and the Vision 2030, October 2016.
  25. U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Statistics (accessed July 2023); Energy Institute, Statistical Review of World Energy, 2023.
  26. Energy Institute, Statistical Review of World Energy, 2023.
  27. Joint Organisations Data Initiative, JODI Oil World Database; Middle East Economic Survey, Weekly Energy, Economic & Geopolitical Outlook, “Middle East Oil Demand Set for Summer Surge,“ June 2, 2023, Vol. 66 No. 22.
  28. Middle East Economic Survey, Weekly Energy, Economic & Geopolitical Outlook, “Middle East Oil Demand Set for Summer Surge,“ June 2, 2023, Vol. 66 No. 22.
  29. Doosan Enerbility, “Doosan Enerbility Signs Contract for Jafurah Cogeneration Plant Project in Saudi Arabia,“ September 23, 2022.
  30. Saudi Aramco, “Jafurah: the jewel of our unconventional gas program,“ December 29, 2022; Doosan Enerbility, “Doosan Enerbility Signs Contract for Jafurah Cogeneration Plant Project in Saudi Arabia,“ September 23, 2022.
  31. Ayman A. Hashem and Ahmed A. Bakhsh, Energy Source, Part G: Economics, Planning, and Policy, “The cost analysis of electric power generation in Saudi Arabia,“ March 10, 2017, Vol. 12 No. 6, pages 591–596; Marc-Antoine Eyl-Mazzega and Elise Cassignol, Policy Center for the New South, The Geopolitics of Seawater Desalination, September 2022; Rinat Gainullin and Hala H. Koura, Arab News, “The rise and rise of water desalination in Saudi Arabia,“ September 11, 2022.
  32. United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Sustainable Development, Decarbonatization in desalination sector in KSA (accessed July 2023); Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC), Decarbonization of the water sector, August 31, 2022; Achref Chibani, Arab Center Washington DC, “The Costs and Benefits of Water Desalination in the Gulf,“ April 12, 2023.
  33. Energy Institute, Statistical Review of World Energy, 2023.
  34. International Trade Administration, “Saudi Arabia Renewable Energy,“ September 13, 2021; Thomas Everill, The Borgen Project, “Recent Developments for Renewable Energy in Saudi Arabia,“ January 7, 2023.
  35. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, General Authority for Statistics, Renewable Energy Statistics 2020 (accessed July 2023); Saudi Press Agency, “Saudi Arabia Announces Floating Five Projects to Produce Electricity with Use of Renewable Energy with Total Capacity of 3,300mw,“ September 25, 2022; Saudi Press Agency, “The Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) signs Power Purchase Agreements for three new solar energy projects with a total capacity of 4,550 MW,“ May 21, 2023.
  36. Al Jazeera, “Saudi Arabia’s first wind farm begins electricity production,“ August 8, 2021; Thomas Everill, The Borgen Project, “Recent Developments for Renewable Energy in Saudi Arabia,“ January 7, 2023.
  37. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Ministry of Energy, Ministry’s Projects (accessed August 2023).
  38. AWCA Power, Projects, Sakaka PV IPP (accessed August 2023).
  39. Oil & Gas Middle East, “Saudi Arabia’s Rabigh solar project begins operations,“ April 26, 2023; Saur Energy, “LONGi gets contract to supply 400MW of solar modules for Saudi Arabia project,“ June 14, 2022.
  40. Energy Institute, Statistical Review of World Energy, 2023.
  41. OPEC, Data Download, World crude exports by country (accessed August 2023).
  42. Global Trade Tracker, Analytics, Country Level Tradeflows (accessed July 2023).
  43. Kpler (accessed August 2023); Jamie Ingram, Middle East Economic Survey, “Saudi Imports Record Russian Oil Amid Diesel Surge,“ April 14, 2023; Jeslyn Lerh, Reuters, “Saudi Arabia imports record Russian fuel oil in June as trade grows,“ July 12, 2023.