Gitnux/Report 2026

Fossil Industry Statistics

The fossil industry stayed a roughly $1.6 trillion traded-energy market in 2025, explore the figures behind company operations, investment, and trends.
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Fossil Industry Statistics
Samuel NorbergWritten by Samuel Norberg·Fact-checked by Maya Johansson
Published
How this report is researched
01Editorial Scope

An editor sets the topic, the inclusion criteria, and the evaluation framework before research starts.

02Source Research

AI search agents locate sources and extract each figure together with the document it came from.

Read our full methodology →

Search agents attach provenance to every extracted figure.

Next review: within 31 days

01 Industry overview

The fossil industry at a glance

The fossil industry remains a roughly $1.6 trillion global traded-energy market in 2025, while oil, natural-gas and coal demand all continued to grow, albeit more slowly than in 2024.

$1.6T[1]
Global fossil-fuel trade, 2025
105.15M b/d[74]
Global oil demand, 2025
13.6M b/d[75]
U.S. crude production, 2025
$1.1T[1]
Fossil-fuel investment, 2025
Market size
The global traded value of fossil fuels was around $1.6 trillion in 2025. Separately, investment in oil, natural gas and coal was estimated at $1.1 trillion in 2025, compared with $2.2 trillion for clean-energy and electrification-related investment.[1]
Market share & regions
Oil demand reached 105.15 million barrels per day globally in 2025, with the largest year-on-year gains recorded in non-OECD Asia, China, Africa, Latin America, India and the Middle East. In electricity, solar PV and wind reached 30% of generation in the European Union in 2025, exceeding fossil-fuel generation for the first time.[74][1]
Segmentation
The industry is conventionally divided into oil, natural gas and coal, with activities spanning extraction, processing, transport, refining, power generation and trading. In 2025, upstream oil investment was expected to be about $420 billion, down 6% year on year, while total fossil-fuel investment across oil, gas and coal was estimated at $1.1 trillion.[1]
Key players & concentration
The United States was the world's largest crude-oil producer in 2025, averaging a record 13.6 million barrels per day. Industry concentration has increased through large acquisitions, including Chevron's completed purchase of Hess and ExxonMobil's acquisition of Pioneer, although comparable global concentration data were not identified.[75][76]
Pricing
Brent crude averaged about $69 per barrel in 2025, the lowest annual average since 2020, as global production exceeded consumption and inventories built. EIA's historical price series reports a 2025 Brent average of $69.14 per barrel.[75]
Trends, drivers & challenges
Global oil, natural-gas and coal demand all increased in 2025, but growth slowed: gas demand rose about 1%, coal demand about 0.4%, and oil demand about 0.65 million barrels per day. Clean-energy deployment since 2019 avoided more than 35 exajoules of annual fossil-fuel demand in 2025, equivalent to around 7% of global fossil-fuel use.[1]
Consumer behavior & competition
Electric-car sales exceeded 20 million units in 2025, representing around one-quarter of new-car sales, helping keep road-transport oil-demand growth muted. Competition is also shifting toward lower-cost supply and flexible gas and LNG projects as companies respond to slower demand growth, price volatility and decarbonisation pressures.[1]
M&A
Oil-and-gas consolidation remained active through 2025. Deloitte identified approximately $8 billion in net divestitures of oil-and-gas distribution assets and roughly $2 billion in net acquisitions of pipelines serving export terminals and national transport corridors between 2024 and 2025.[76]
Regulation
The EU methane regulation requires measurement, reporting and verification of methane emissions in the energy sector and covers imports of crude oil, natural gas and coal. In November 2026, the Council agreed to postpone specific importer monitoring obligations to January 1, 2028, and methane-intensity reporting to August 5, 2029.[77]
Latest news
The latest broad assessment from the International Energy Agency found that fossil-fuel demand continued rising in 2025, but low-emissions sources supplied nearly 60% of total energy-demand growth. Global energy-related CO2 emissions reached a new high of nearly 38.4 billion tonnes in 2025, although growth slowed to about 0.4%.[1]

02 Ranking

Top 10 Companies in the Fossil Industry

The leading companies in the fossil industry, ranked on market impact, performance, momentum, innovation and brand popularity.

Updated November 11, 2026 · Next review December 11, 2026

Verdict

ADNOC stands out for integrated oil, gas and petrochemicals because it reported 42,515 employees in 2025, while Petrobras is the pick for oil, gas, refining and fuels since it reported R$497.5 billion of 2025 sales revenue.

Ranked by Overall score · How we score ↓

Editor's top 3 picks

Where to start, by need.

  1. #1 Overall · Leader in oil, gas and chemicals

    ADNOC

    AE

    Ranked #1 · 9.1 · Oil, gas and chemicals

    Why we picked it: It operates integrated oil, gas and petrochemicals in the UAE and reports 42,515 employees in 2025.

    See in ranking ↓Visit adnoc.ae ↗

  2. #2 overall

    Petrobras

    BR

    Ranked #2 · 9.0 · Oil, gas and chemicals

    Why we picked it: It operates across Brazil’s oil and gas chain and reported R$497.5 billion in 2025 sales revenue.

    See in ranking ↓Visit petrobras.com.br ↗

  3. #3 overall

    Saudi Aramco

    SA

    Ranked #3 · 9.0 · Oil, gas and chemicals

    Why we picked it: Its integrated oil, gas and chemicals footprint covers global energy and chemicals supply.

    See in ranking ↓Visit aramco.com ↗

Pick 1 is the #1 company overall. No other segment places in the top 5, so picks 2 and 3 follow rank.

Full ranking

Sort by
Top 10 companies in the fossil industry, 2026 – Gitnux ranking
#CompanyOverall ↓Company snapshot
1

ADNOC

Oil, gas and chemicals · AE

9.1
2

Petrobras

Oil, gas and chemicals · BR

9.0
3

Saudi Aramco

Oil, gas and chemicals · SA

9.0
4

Shell

Oil, gas and chemicals · GB

8.9
5

ExxonMobil

Oil, gas and chemicals · US

8.8
6

QatarEnergy

Qatar oil, gas and LNG · QA

8.8
7

Chevron

Integrated oil, gas, refining and chemicals · US

8.8
8

ConocoPhillips

Global oil and natural gas production · US

8.0
9

Eni

Integrated oil, gas, LNG and refining · IT

7.8
10

Peabody Energy

Thermal and metallurgical coal mining · US

7.7

How we score

  • Impact (30%): scale and weight in the market (revenue, market share, employees, market position).
  • Performance (20%): recent revenue growth and operating margin; an analyst assessment where a company does not publish them.
  • Momentum (20%): growth trajectory and future potential.
  • Innovation (15%): R&D intensity and how technologically advanced the company is.

Popularity (brand search demand, 15%) counts toward Overall but is not published as a column. Overall leaves out what is not known.

Scale Scores are shown on a 7–10 scale with one decimal; bars start at 7.0.

Cadence Recalculated when new figures are published; next review December 11, 2026.

Independence. Rankings are editorially independent. Scores, ranks, picks and the verdict follow the method above; no company can pay to change them.

Cite this ranking

APA

Samuel Norberg. (2026, November 11). Top 10 companies in the fossil industry. In Fossil Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/fossil-industry-statistics/#top-companies

04 Statistics

Technology & Innovation

Digital and automation themes show up across oil and gas: 92% were implementing, developing or planning new digital-twin applications within five years in 2025, alongside survey-reported value from digital solutions.

AI in the fossil industry

  • 24 oil-and-gas supercomputers ranked among the world’s 500 fastest in 2024, up from 11 in 2000 globally.[1]
  • 40% lower was the average concentration of AI talent in utilities, oil, gas and mining than in several comparison sectors between 2018 and 2024 globally.[1]
  • 1% of energy-related patents referenced AI as part of the patented innovation during 2013–2022, with a similar share in fossil fuels and clean energy globally.[1]

Automation in the fossil industry

  • 10%–20% lower production costs could result from widespread digital technologies in oil and gas, including automated drilling, sensors and reservoir modelling, globally.[1]
  • 5% higher technically recoverable oil and gas resources could result globally from widespread digitalisation, including automation and advanced data processing.[1]

Digital Transformation in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • For every US$1 spent, upstream oil and gas companies expect digital solutions to generate US$2.80 of value, according to EY’s global 2026 survey.[2]
  • Over US$790 billion of value is expected from digital solutions in upstream oil and gas worldwide between 2026 and 2035, based on an EY survey.[2]
  • Across oil, gas and utilities worldwide, 17% of companies reported completing their digital-transformation journeys in 2022.[3]
  • More than 60% of upstream oil and gas survey respondents report gains of at least 10% in production, recovery, capital efficiency or time savings from digital solutions.[2]
  • 92% of oil and gas and chemicals companies were implementing, developing or planning new digital-twin applications within five years in 2025.[2]
  • 50% of oil and gas and chemicals companies were already using digital twins to manage assets in 2025, according to the EY Future of Energy Survey.[2]

Technology Adoption in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • Among oil, gas and energy organizations surveyed by ASUG, 42% expected RPA or similar automation to greatly affect digital-transformation efforts in 2025.[4]
  • Among oil, gas and energy organizations surveyed by ASUG, 19% expected conversational user interfaces or chatbots to greatly affect digital-transformation efforts in 2025.[4]
  • Among oil, gas and energy organizations surveyed by ASUG, 33% expected low-code or no-code technology to greatly affect digital-transformation efforts in 2025.[4]
  • Among oil, gas and energy organizations surveyed by ASUG, 56% expected AI and machine learning to greatly affect digital-transformation efforts in 2025.[4]

Cloud Computing in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across oil and gas companies surveyed globally, 90% reported using cloud computing in 2020, while 76% of users were developing improvements or new use cases.[5]
  • Across oil and gas companies surveyed globally, 49% ranked the cloud as a high-investment technology over the following 18 months.[6]
  • Across oil and gas companies surveyed globally, 45% ranked the cloud among technologies delivering high business benefit over the following 18 months.[6]
  • Among oil, gas and energy organizations surveyed by ASUG, 47% expected cloud technology to greatly affect digital-transformation efforts in 2025.[4]

Big Data in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across oil and gas companies surveyed in the 2016 Accenture upstream study, 13% used big-data and analytics insights to shape their approach to markets and competitors.[7]
  • Across oil and gas organizations surveyed globally, 52% ranked big data and analytics as a high-investment technology over the following 18 months.[6]
  • Across oil and gas companies surveyed in the 2016 Accenture upstream study, 36% were already investing in big data and analytics.[7]
  • Across oil and gas organizations surveyed globally, 59% ranked big data and analytics among technologies delivering high business benefit over the following 18 months.[6]

IoT in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • Among oil and gas companies surveyed by Microsoft, 94% were IoT adopters in the survey period ending in 2021.[8]
  • Among oil and gas businesses surveyed by Viasat, 54% had a formal IoT strategy in 2024.[9]
  • Among oil and gas companies surveyed by Microsoft, 83% had at least one IoT project reaching the use stage in the survey period ending in 2021.[8]
  • Across oil and gas companies surveyed by EY, 52% reported using IoT in 2020, while 49% were developing improvements or new use cases.[5]

Innovation in the fossil industry

  • 35 years elapsed between the artificial neural network prototype and its first commercialisation, illustrating the long innovation cycle relevant to energy technologies.[1]
  • 2.3% of energy start-ups had an AI-related value proposition, while AI-related energy patents accounted for around 1% of energy patents globally.[1]
  • 25% of global oil and gas supply came from unconventional sources in 2024, up from 10% in 2010, driven by technology growth and lower costs.[1]

05 Statistics

Data & Analytics

Operational performance depends on data maturity: 98% of oil-and-gas companies with $250 million–$1 billion revenue had stabilized business-intelligence capabilities in a 2026 survey, while 62% used remote asset monitoring in 2024.

Business intelligence in the fossil industry

  • 87% of oil-and-gas companies with $10 million–$100 million revenue had stabilized business-intelligence capabilities in a 2026 survey.[10]
  • 62% of oil-and-gas companies with $250 million–$1 billion revenue had monetized business-intelligence capabilities in a 2026 survey.[10]
  • 96% of oil-and-gas companies with $100 million–$250 million revenue had stabilized business-intelligence capabilities in a 2026 survey.[10]
  • 98% of oil-and-gas companies with $250 million–$1 billion revenue had stabilized business-intelligence capabilities in a 2026 survey.[10]
  • 83% of oil-and-gas companies with $100 million–$250 million revenue had optimized business-intelligence capabilities in a 2026 survey.[10]
  • 91% of oil-and-gas companies with $250 million–$1 billion revenue had optimized business-intelligence capabilities in a 2026 survey.[10]

Data analytics in the fossil industry

  • 71% of oil-and-gas companies used digital dashboards or visualization tools for operational KPIs in 2023.[11]
  • 62% of oil-and-gas organizations used remote asset monitoring in 2024.[11]
  • 34% of upstream oil-and-gas organizations adopted advanced analytics for decision-making in 2024.[11]
  • 27% of oil-and-gas respondents adopted machine-learning predictive maintenance in 2024.[11]
  • 59% of oil-and-gas organizations used digital twins in at least one operational area in 2024.[11]
  • 46% of oil-and-gas companies used digital learning or skills programs to reskill employees for data and analytics roles in 2024.[12]

Data Quality in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • 36% of geoscience professionals said having the most current and best-quality data was their biggest collaboration challenge in 2023, across oil and gas and other surveyed industries.[13]
  • 62% of upstream oil and gas professionals rated complete data as important for effective and efficient geoscience analysis in 2023.[14]
  • 68% of upstream oil and gas professionals rated data integrity as important for effective and efficient geoscience analysis in 2023.[14]
  • 66% of upstream oil and gas professionals rated accurate data as important for effective and efficient geoscience analysis in 2023.[14]
  • 50% of oil and gas respondents were confident their organization could handle data-quality issues in 2023, based on a global geoscience-sector survey.[13]
  • 12% of oil and gas respondents lacked the necessary information for data-driven decisions in 2023, across the surveyed industries worldwide.[13]

Data Governance in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • 32% of oil and gas respondents expected to establish a data-management framework within two to three years in 2023.[15]
  • 40% of upstream oil and gas organizations considered data management a strategic priority in 2023, up from more than 30% in 2020.[14]
  • 4% of upstream oil and gas organizations reported that geoscience data management received only minimal senior-management and wider-business support in 2023.[14]
  • 96% of upstream oil and gas organizations identified data centralization as a current or future data-management priority for the next two years in 2023.[14]
  • 56% of upstream oil and gas organizations identified data security as a data-management priority for the next two years in 2023.[14]
  • 14% of oil and gas respondents had an established data-management framework in 2023, one of the lowest rates among surveyed industries worldwide.[15]

KPIs in the fossil industry

  • 75% of Asia-Pacific midstream and downstream oil-and-gas respondents prioritized digitalization for maintenance, reliability and activities.[16]
  • 71% of upstream oil-and-gas organizations had implemented remote operations, control rooms or remote production monitoring in 2024.[11]
  • 31% of oil-and-gas companies deployed edge computing in operational technology in 2024.[12]
  • 71% of oil-and-gas respondents used digital dashboards or visualization tools to track operational KPIs in 2023.[11]
  • 27% of energy-and-utilities organizations used advanced analytics for forecasting in 2023.[12]
  • 30% faster incident response was reported by oil-and-gas firms using real-time monitoring and workflow automation.[12]

06 Statistics

Strategy & Growth

Upstream spending is still large but shifting: $570 billion was expected global upstream oil and gas investment in 2025, with 40% of that investment aimed at slowing production declines at existing fields.

Growth in the fossil industry

  • $570 billion was the expected global upstream oil and gas investment in 2025, around 4% below 2024.[1]
  • 114.7 million barrels per day is the forecast global oil-production capacity in 2030.[1]
  • More than 90 billion cubic metres per year of LNG liquefaction capacity had been sanctioned in 2025 by the IEA’s Gas 2025 assessment.[1]
  • 40% of global upstream oil and gas investment in 2025 is dedicated to slowing production declines at existing fields.[1]
  • Over 80 billion cubic metres per year of U.S. LNG liquefaction capacity had been approved year-to-date in 2025.[1]
  • 4–5% is Shell’s targeted annual growth rate for LNG sales through 2030.[17]

Differentiation in the fossil industry

  • 86% of Shell’s 2024 oil-and-gas production was gas on an oil-equivalent basis.[17]
  • 1.4 million net acres was the combined ExxonMobil-Pioneer acreage in the Delaware and Midland basins after the acquisition.[18]
  • 16 billion barrels of oil-equivalent resource were estimated for ExxonMobil’s combined Delaware and Midland basin acreage after acquiring Pioneer.[18]
  • 10.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent were Chevron’s proved reserves at year-end 2025, 8% above 2024.[19]
  • 1.3 million barrels of oil equivalent per day was ExxonMobil’s expected Permian production after the Pioneer acquisition, based on 2023 volumes.[18]
  • 2 million barrels of oil equivalent per day was ExxonMobil’s initial estimate for Permian production in 2027 after acquiring Pioneer.[18]

Mergers and acquisitions in the fossil industry

  • $53 billion was the announced equity value of Chevron’s proposed acquisition of Hess in 2023.[19]
  • 100% of Pavilion Energy’s shares were agreed to be acquired by Shell in 2024.[17]
  • $5 billion of debt was assumed by ExxonMobil in its acquisition of Pioneer Natural Resources.[18]
  • $63 billion was the fair value of ExxonMobil shares issued for its Pioneer acquisition.[18]
  • $60 billion was the total enterprise value of Chevron’s proposed Hess acquisition, including debt.[19]
  • $1 billion was Chevron’s targeted annual run-rate cost synergy from the completed Hess acquisition by the end of 2025.[19]

Strategic partnerships in the fossil industry

  • $1.8 billion was the 2025 capital expenditure of Chevron’s 50%-owned Tengizchevroil affiliate.[19]
  • 18 LNG carriers were managed or operated by Shell, alongside 65 on time charter, in its shipping network in 2024.[17]
  • 10% was the approximate share of the global LNG shipping fleet represented by Shell’s managed, operated and time-chartered carriers in 2024.[17]
  • 6.5 million tonnes per annum was the contracted LNG supply volume in Pavilion Energy’s portfolio acquired by Shell in 2024.[17]
  • $10–15 billion was Chevron’s expected before-tax asset-sale proceeds through 2028 after the Hess combination.[19]
  • 50% was Chevron’s ownership interest in Tengizchevroil, whose affiliate capital expenditure declined to $1.8 billion in 2025.[19]

07 Statistics

People & Workforce

Workforce pressure remains a constraint: 60% of energy companies reported labour shortages in 2024, while employment reached 12.4 million after 210,000 additional fuel-supply jobs were added globally in 2024.

Hiring in the fossil industry

  • 6,800 employees were hired by Halliburton in 2024 globally.[20]
  • 60% of energy companies reported labour shortages in 2024, constraining hiring across the global energy sector, including fossil fuels.[1]
  • 83,000 new oil-and-gas jobs were created by increased Middle Eastern capital investment in 2024.[21]
  • 210,000 additional oil-and-gas fuel-supply jobs were added globally in 2024, bringing employment to 12.4 million.[21]

Employee retention in the fossil industry

  • 50% of fossil-fuel workers said they would prioritise staying within the energy sector when seeking alternative employment.[1]
  • 5.0% was ConocoPhillips’ voluntary attrition rate in its latest reported year on the company’s performance-metrics page.[22]
  • 8% was Halliburton’s voluntary turnover rate in 2024 globally.[20]

Remote Work in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across U.S. oil and gas extraction, 40.0% of positions were fully hybrid in 2024, based on five employer respondents.[23]
  • Across Canada’s mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction sector, 2.3% of employees were expected to work entirely remotely in the fourth quarter of 2025.[24]
  • Energy, oil and gas offices averaged 9.9% capacity usage in 2024, indicating substantially less office attendance than full-time in-person operation.[25]
  • Among U.S. energy, natural-resources, and chemicals workers, 8% preferred fully remote work in KPMG’s 2025 survey.[26]
  • Across U.S. oil and gas extraction, 60.0% of positions were fully in person in 2024, based on five employer respondents.[23]

Hybrid Work in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across U.S. oil and gas extraction employers, 40% of surveyed positions were fully hybrid in 2023, based on five respondents.[23]
  • Across Canada’s mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction sector, 36.0% of employees were expected to work partly on-site and partly remotely in the fourth quarter of 2025.[24]
  • Among U.S. energy, natural-resources, and chemicals workers, 43% preferred mostly in-office work in KPMG’s 2025 survey.[26]
  • Among U.S. energy, natural-resources, and chemicals workers, 25% preferred mostly remote work in KPMG’s 2025 survey.[26]

Upskilling in the fossil industry

  • 18.6 average training hours per employee were reported by ConocoPhillips in the latest year shown on its performance-metrics page.[22]
  • 73% of oil-and-gas workers said they would need employer support through training or reskilling to adapt successfully to the net-zero transition.[27]
  • 40% of surveyed energy firms preferred internal recruitment to retain sector-specific know-how, according to the IEA’s workforce analysis.[1]

Employee Engagement in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • At California Resources Corporation, 87% of employees agreed in 2023 that the people they work with treat each other with respect.[28]
  • At California Resources Corporation, 76% of employees agreed in 2023 that their job gave them flexibility to meet work and personal needs.[28]
  • Among oil, energy, and utilities employees, the engagement rate was 86% in the 2022–23 OE Engagement Report.[29]
  • Globally, 20% of employees were engaged in 2025, according to Gallup’s 2026 global report.[30]
  • At California Resources Corporation, 86% of employees agreed in 2023 that they could depend on members of their team.[28]

DEI in the fossil industry

  • 21% of the Energy Workforce & Technology Council’s oil-and-gas service-sector workforce were women in 2023 data reported in 2024.[31]
  • 24% of the U.S. petroleum-fuels workforce were women in 2024, representing 131,400 workers.[32]
  • 76% of the U.S. petroleum-fuels workforce were men in 2024.[32]
  • 22% of the global oil-and-gas workforce were women, according to the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers.[33]
  • 38% of the Energy Workforce & Technology Council’s oil-and-gas service-sector workforce were ethnic minorities in 2023 data reported in 2024.[31]

Change Management in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • Among oil and gas leaders, 57% said they took employees into account when deciding whether to enact business-wide changes, according to 2023 research.[5]

08 Statistics

Customer & Sales

Customer experience in the fossil industry

  • 800 points was the 2024 Midwest regional average for U.S. business gas-utility customer satisfaction.[34]
  • 729 points was the 2024 U.S. residential gas-utility customer-satisfaction score on J.D. Power’s 1,000-point scale, down 11 points year over year.[34]
  • 774 points was the 2024 U.S. residential gas-utility satisfaction score for customer care, down 26 points from 2023.[34]
  • 63,363 online interviews measured the 2024 experience of residential customers of 86 major gas-utility brands in the United States.[34]
  • 773 points was the 2024 U.S. residential gas-utility satisfaction score for billing and payment, down 22 points from 2023.[34]

Customer retention in the fossil industry

  • 76% of surveyed U.S. fuel-oil companies identified adding customers in existing geographies as an effective growth strategy in 2025.[35]
  • 52% of surveyed U.S. fuel-oil companies reported that 1% to 20% of their active customers used a price-protection plan in 2025.[35]
  • 68% of surveyed U.S. fuel-oil companies identified retaining existing customers and cross-selling as an effective growth strategy in the 2025 Gray, Gray & Gray energy survey.[35]
  • 3% of surveyed U.S. fuel-oil companies reported that 61% or more of their active customers used a budget plan in 2025.[35]
  • 41% of surveyed U.S. fuel-oil companies identified adding customers in adjacent new geographies as an effective growth strategy in 2025.[35]

Customer acquisition in the fossil industry

  • 41% of surveyed U.S. fuel-oil companies said adding new customers in adjacent geographies was an effective growth strategy in 2025.[35]
  • 22% of surveyed U.S. fuel-oil companies identified acquiring another company as an effective growth strategy in 2025.[35]
  • 76% of surveyed U.S. fuel-oil companies said adding new customers in their existing geography was an effective growth strategy in 2025.[35]

Customer loyalty in the fossil industry

  • 83% of surveyed U.S. fuel purchasers said price was important when buying gasoline, compared with 29% who said brand was important.[36]
  • Nearly 50% of surveyed U.S. fuel purchasers said less environmentally harmful gasoline could differentiate a petroleum retailer from competitors.[36]
  • 22% of U.S. convenience-store customers said loyalty-program rewards, savings or offers were a reason for visiting a store, according to a PDI study.[37]
  • 37% of U.S. drivers said they were willing to drive past a gas station to reach their favorite brand in a Market Force survey.[38]

09 Statistics

Marketing & Brand

Brand and advertising spend remains high across major fossil groups: $7 billion was estimated annual media, creative-advertising and public-relations spending of the 29 largest fossil-fuel majors in the Clean Creatives analysis.

Marketing in the fossil industry

  • $2.09 billion was the average annual media spending of the analyzed fossil-fuel majors during 2021–2023.[39]
  • $2.7 billion was the average annual public-relations spending of the analyzed oil majors during 2021–2023.[39]
  • $7 billion was the estimated annual media, creative-advertising and public-relations spending of the 29 largest fossil-fuel majors in the Clean Creatives analysis.[39]
  • 66% of surveyed U.S. fuel-oil companies reported having an annual marketing budget in 2025.[35]
  • $630 million was the average annual creative-advertising spending of the analyzed fossil-fuel majors during 2021–2023.[39]

Digital marketing in the fossil industry

  • 1,998% was the reported increase in new Google advertisements from four major fossil-fuel companies targeting Türkiye ahead of COP31.[40]
  • 48% of 25,174 pro-fossil-fuel Facebook advertisements analyzed in 2020 included the narrative that the fossil-fuel sector was part of the climate solution.[41]
  • 431 million views were received by pro-fossil-fuel Facebook advertisements analyzed over one year by InfluenceMap.[41]
  • 25,174 Facebook advertisements were analyzed in InfluenceMap’s study of oil-and-gas digital advertising.[41]

Branding in the fossil industry

  • Shell, ExxonMobil and PETRONAS led the oil-and-gas category for brand strength in Brand Finance’s 2025 ranking.[42]
  • Aramco retained second place among the most valuable oil-and-gas brands in Brand Finance’s 2025 ranking.[42]
  • Shell was ranked the most valuable and strongest oil-and-gas brand in Brand Finance’s 2025 Energy 100 ranking.[42]
  • $688.6 billion was the combined 2025 brand value of the world’s 100 most valuable energy brands, including oil-and-gas and utility brands.[42]

Social media in the fossil industry

  • 431 million views were generated by pro-fossil-fuel Facebook advertisements during the one-year period analyzed by InfluenceMap.[41]
  • 48% of 25,174 oil-and-gas Facebook advertisements analyzed by InfluenceMap framed the fossil-fuel sector as part of the climate solution.[41]
  • More than 70 new subscribers per year were gained on average by each Instagram post published by Shell in a study of leading European oil-and-gas companies.[43]
  • 25,174 Facebook advertisements formed the dataset for InfluenceMap’s analysis of oil-and-gas social-media advertising.[41]

Influencer Marketing in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • One Shell influencer campaign made audiences 31% more likely to believe the company was committed to cleaner fuels, according to a campaign submission cited in 2023.[44]
  • At least 17 influencers promoting BP’s rewards app generated 675,000 likes and 5 million views across posts, according to analysis of campaigns through 2023.[44]
  • Nearly 60 million combined followers belonged to influencers identified in fossil-fuel partnership posts published worldwide since 2017, according to analysis published in 2023.[44]
  • Shell’s official Instagram account averaged 572 likes per post among five leading European oil and gas companies analyzed over 2019–2022.[43]
  • More than 100 influencers worldwide had been paid to promote fossil-fuel firms since 2017, in campaigns reported to have reached billions of people, according to a 2023 investigation.[44]

10 Statistics

Operations & Execution

Execution time and margin sensitivity are tied to digital operations: SLB reported that reservoir insights took 48 hours to deliver using SLB digital operations to a Southeast Asian operator.

Process optimization in the fossil industry

  • 430 basis points was the year-on-year margin expansion in SLB’s 2024 Production Systems segment, attributed partly to stronger digital performance.[45]
  • 48 hours was the time needed to deliver reservoir insights to a Southeast Asian operator, compared with the usual 2–4 weeks, using SLB digital operations.[46]
  • 595 billion USD was global upstream oil and gas capital investment in 2024, according to IEA estimates based on industry spending plans.[1]
  • 80% of oil and gas methane-abatement options could have been deployed at no net cost in 2022 worldwide.[1]
  • 4.3 million barrels of oil equivalent per day was ExxonMobil’s 2024 production, up by 595,000 barrels per day from 2023 after asset and operating optimization.[47]

Operational efficiency in the fossil industry

  • 1% was the approximate improvement in global primary energy intensity in 2024, according to the IEA’s energy-efficiency assessment.[1]
  • 11% is the typical energy-use reduction associated with implementing ISO 50001 energy-management systems in industrial facilities, including fossil-fuel operations.[1]
  • 4.6 million barrels of oil equivalent per day was ExxonMobil’s reported fourth-quarter 2024 net production, reflecting a 20,000-barrel-per-day sequential increase.[48]
  • 52% was the year-on-year increase in SLB Production Systems revenue in the fourth quarter of 2024.[45]
  • 35% of global oil and gas production in 2024 came from the largest supergiant fields, according to the IEA’s field-decline analysis.[1]

Quality management in the fossil industry

  • 132% was California Resources’ 2024 natural-gas realization with derivative settlements as a percentage of the NYMEX contract-month average.[49]
  • 74.04 USD per barrel was Shell subsidiaries’ 2024 average realized crude-oil and NGL price worldwide.[20]
  • 61% was California Resources’ 2024 NGL realization as a percentage of Brent crude pricing.[49]
  • 104% was California Resources’ 2024 oil realization with derivative settlements as a percentage of WTI pricing.[49]
  • 76.13 USD per barrel was Shell subsidiaries’ 2024 average realized crude-oil and NGL price in Asia.[20]

Supply chain in the fossil industry

  • 102% was California Resources’ 2024 oil realization without derivative settlements as a percentage of WTI pricing.[49]
  • 194,000 barrels per day was the volume of heavy-crude blends contributed to the Western Canadian Select stream by MEG Energy in the fourth quarter of 2024.[20]
  • 62% was Vitesse Energy’s 2024 natural-gas price realization relative to average Henry Hub pricing.[50]
  • 2.27 USD per MMBtu was the 2024 average Henry Hub natural-gas price cited by ConocoPhillips, down from 2.74 USD in 2023 amid high storage levels.[51]
  • 47.92 USD per barrel was ConocoPhillips’ 2024 average realized bitumen price, up 14% from 2023 after transportation and blending changes.[51]

Outsourcing / Offshoring in the oil and gas sector (sector benchmark)

  • Among supplementary outsourced or offshore resources in oil, gas and energy, 81% focused on contract administration in 2022.[52]
  • Across oil and gas companies surveyed globally, 47% planned to increase their use of managed services in 2020.[53]
  • Among supplementary outsourced or offshore resources in oil, gas and energy, 27% handled accounts payable or receivable in 2022.[52]
  • Among supplementary outsourced or offshore resources in oil, gas and energy, 48% handled contract review and discovery in 2022.[52]
  • Across oil, gas and energy organizations, 24% had fully outsourced some contract-commercial-management activities in 2022.[52]

11 Statistics

Finance & Pricing

Pricing conditions sit alongside spending: Brent averaged $69.14 per barrel in 2025, while fossil-fuel investment in 2025 was estimated at $1.1 trillion.

Pricing strategy in the fossil industry

  • 72.43 USD per barrel was the 2024 realized oil price reported in the referenced oil-and-gas annual report.[54]
  • 100% was California Resources’ 2024 oil realization with derivative settlements as a percentage of WTI pricing.[49]
  • 54.83 USD per barrel of oil equivalent was ConocoPhillips’ 2024 worldwide average realized price, down 6% from 2023.[51]
  • 80.82 USD per barrel was the 2024 average Brent reference price reported in the referenced oil-and-gas annual report.[54]
  • 76.55 USD per barrel was the 2024 average WTI reference price reported in the referenced oil-and-gas annual report.[54]

Cost reduction in the fossil industry

  • 135 billion USD of the estimated methane-abatement spending through 2030 is capital expenditure in the IEA net-zero scenario.[1]
  • 25 Mt of upstream methane emissions could have been avoided at no net cost in 2024, implying cost-neutral reduction potential for oil and gas operators.[1]
  • 420 billion USD was global upstream operating expenditure in 2024, according to the IEA’s oil-and-gas field analysis.[1]
  • 595 billion USD was global upstream capital investment in 2024, according to the IEA’s oil-and-gas field analysis.[1]
  • 35 billion USD of the estimated methane-abatement spending through 2030 is operating expenditure in the IEA net-zero scenario.[1]

Profitability in the fossil industry

  • 36.483 billion USD was ExxonMobil’s 2024 consolidated net income including noncontrolling interests.[55]
  • 35.052 billion USD was ExxonMobil’s 2024 segment income after excluding noncontrolling interests.[55]
  • 25.4 billion USD was ExxonMobil’s 2024 upstream earnings, up 4.1 billion USD from 2023.[18]
  • 436 billion USD was Saudi Aramco’s 2024 revenue, according to the company’s filing cited by Associated Press.[48]
  • 106.25 billion USD was Saudi Aramco’s 2024 annual profit, down 12% from 2023.[48]

Financial planning in the fossil industry

  • 595 billion USD was global upstream oil and gas capital investment in 2024, according to the IEA’s later field-decline analysis.[1]
  • 21.848 billion USD was ExxonMobil’s 2024 upstream capital and exploration expenditure, including 11.252 billion USD in the United States.[18]
  • 35 billion USD of that 2030 methane-abatement requirement is planned operating expenditure under the IEA scenario.[1]
  • 25.647 billion USD was ExxonMobil’s 2024 total cash capital expenditure worldwide.[18]
  • 570 billion USD was the IEA’s estimate for global upstream oil and gas investment in 2024 in its 2024 investment outlook.[1]

12 Statistics

Product & Service

Services target downtime and planning: 30% is the potential reduction in unplanned downtime from predictive-to-prescriptive maintenance and digital workflow management in oil and gas.

Product development in the fossil industry

  • 0.6% was listed oil-and-gas companies’ average R&D spending as a share of revenue in 2024 globally.[21]
  • $4.247 billion was SLB’s 2024 Digital & Integration revenue, including digital products and services used by oil-and-gas customers worldwide.[45]
  • $2.44 billion was SLB’s digital revenue in 2024, supporting cloud, artificial intelligence and digital-operations product development globally.[46]
  • 10% was SLB’s year-on-year Digital & Integration revenue growth in 2024, driven entirely by its digital business globally.[45]
  • $643 million was Baker Hughes’ research-and-development expense in 2024, covering new products, services, technologies and customer-specific solutions globally.[56]

Product lifecycle in the fossil industry

  • 5 years after design life is the assumed decommissioning timeline for Australian offshore oil-and-gas assets when dates are unavailable.[57]
  • 4.2% per year is the average decline rate for onshore oil fields, according to IEA analysis of field performance.[1]
  • 10.3% per year is the average decline rate for deep-offshore oil fields, according to IEA analysis of field performance.[1]
  • $11.8 billion was bp’s recorded decommissioning provision at December 31, 2024, covering oil-and-gas asset retirement obligations globally.[58]
  • 3,728 offshore oil-and-gas platforms were identified across the North Sea, Gulf of Mexico and Persian Gulf in 2025.[59]

After-sales in the fossil industry

  • 31% of oil-and-gas service leaders expected still to be in reactive service-delivery mode during 2024.[60]
  • 64% of oil-and-gas field-service engineers said management demands were higher than when they began field service work.[60]
  • 16.9 million barrels of oil equivalent per month are lost from U.S. oil-and-gas facility downtime, according to IFS calculations.[61]
  • 22% is the average productivity increase achieved by IFS oil-and-gas customers using maintenance-planning and scheduling capabilities.[61]
  • 71% of oil-and-gas field-service engineers said customer demands were higher in 2024 than previously.[60]

Value proposition in the fossil industry

  • 30–50 cents per barrel is the estimated downstream profit impact from analytics-driven yield, energy and throughput optimization.[62]
  • $2 per barrel of oil equivalent is McKinsey’s estimated value from technology-enabled exploration and drilling improvements in oil and gas.[62]
  • 80% was the estimated annual maintenance reduction at Aker BP’s Valhall field from connected valve data and analytics.[16]
  • 30% is the potential reduction in unplanned downtime from predictive-to-prescriptive maintenance and digital workflow management in oil and gas.[62]
  • $3 per barrel of oil equivalent is McKinsey’s estimated value from enhanced well and reservoir management in oil and gas.[62]

13 Statistics

Sustainability & Ethics

Methane remains a focal compliance and risk area: global natural-gas production contributed 36 million tonnes of methane in 2025, and global upstream methane intensity fell by around 10% between 2019 and 2025.

Sustainability in the fossil industry

  • 36 million tonnes of methane came from global natural-gas production in 2025.[1]
  • Global upstream methane intensity for oil and natural-gas production fell by around 10% between 2019 and 2025.[1]
  • 124 million tonnes of methane were emitted annually by global oil, gas and coal production in 2025.[1]
  • 45 million tonnes of methane came from global oil production in 2025.[1]
  • Around 70% of fossil-fuel methane emissions came from the ten largest emitting countries in 2025.[1]

ESG in the fossil industry

  • Natural gas represented 22% of global fuel-combustion emissions in 2024.[1]
  • Oil represented 32% of global fuel-combustion emissions in 2024.[1]
  • Coal accounted for 28% of global total energy supply in 2024.[1]
  • 80% of global total energy supply came from fossil fuels in 2024.[1]
  • Oil accounted for 30% of global total energy supply in 2024.[1]

Carbon footprint in the fossil industry

  • Around 8 million tonnes of methane came from abandoned coal mines and oil and gas wells in 2024.[1]
  • Oil operations produced around 50 million tonnes of methane in 2023.[1]
  • Around 500 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent greenhouse-gas emissions resulted annually from flaring in 2023.[1]
  • Coal operations produced around 40 million tonnes of methane in 2023.[1]
  • The natural-gas supply chain produced just under 30 million tonnes of methane in 2023.[1]

15 Statistics

Globalization & Expansion

Trade and LNG demand growth shapes expansion: China imported 79 million tonnes of LNG in 2024, an 8.6% increase from 2023, and India imported a record 27 million tonnes of LNG in 2024.

Globalization in the fossil industry

  • 20% of global upstream oil and gas investment is expected to be located in the Middle East in 2025, a record regional share.[1]
  • 407 million tonnes of LNG were traded globally in 2024.[17]
  • 13% of global natural-gas demand was met through LNG supplies in 2024.[17]
  • China imported 79 million tonnes of LNG in 2024, an 8.6% increase from 2023.[17]
  • India imported a record 27 million tonnes of LNG in 2024, 20% more than in 2023.[17]

Cultural adaptation in the fossil industry

  • 44% of Dana Gas’s total procurement spend, worth $237 million, was directed to local suppliers in 2024.[72]
  • 4% is Woodside’s minimum local-content requirement during execution of the Trion project.[73]
  • 10% is Woodside’s minimum local-content requirement during Trion project operations.[73]
  • 80% of Pearl Petroleum’s workforce in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq was non-expatriate in 2024.[72]

Supplier management in the fossil industry

  • 44% of Dana Gas’s total procurement spend was allocated to local suppliers in 2024.[72]
  • $237 million was Dana Gas’s total procurement spend used to calculate its 2024 local-supplier share.[72]
  • $1.262 billion was ConocoPhillips’ U.S. supplier-diversity spend with minority, women, disabled, LGBTQ+ and veteran-owned businesses in 2025.[22]
  • 80% of Pearl Petroleum’s workforce was locally employed in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq in 2024.[72]
  • $1.088 billion was ConocoPhillips’ U.S. spending with small-business enterprises in 2025.[22]

Stakeholder management in the fossil industry

  • 545 million ExxonMobil shares with a fair value of $63 billion were issued for the Pioneer acquisition in 2024.[18]
  • $1 billion was Chevron’s expected annual run-rate cost synergy from the Hess acquisition by the end of 2025.[19]
  • 10.3% was the premium represented by Chevron’s proposed Hess transaction based on the October 20, 2023 closing price.[19]
  • 317 million Chevron shares were expected to be issued for the Hess transaction under its 2023 agreement.[19]

Distribution channels in the fossil industry

  • 65.82 million tonnes were Shell’s LNG sales volumes in 2024.[17]
  • 6.5 million tonnes per annum was Pavilion Energy’s contracted LNG supply volume acquired by Shell in 2024.[17]
  • 600 times smaller is the volume of natural gas after it is cooled into LNG for shipping.[17]
  • 29.09 million tonnes were Shell’s LNG liquefaction volumes in 2024.[17]
  • Shell’s LNG carriers represented around 10% of the global LNG shipping fleet in 2024.[17]

Key questions about the fossil industry

How large is the fossil-fuel market in 2025?
The fossil industry is a roughly $1.6 trillion global traded-energy market in 2025, based on global fossil-fuel trade.
Is fossil-fuel demand still growing in 2025?
Yes, demand in oil, natural gas and coal all continued to grow in 2025, but growth slowed versus 2024.
Which companies lead the fossil industry?
ADNOC stands out for integrated oil, gas and petrochemicals because it reported 42,515 employees in 2025, while Petrobras is the pick for oil, gas, refining and fuels since it reported R$497.5 billion of 2025 sales revenue.
What technology shifts are showing up in oil and gas operations?
Oil and gas firms report adoption across cloud, automation and digital twins: 92% were implementing, developing or planning new digital-twin applications within five years in 2025, and 90% used cloud computing in 2020.
How concentrated is the upstream oil-and-gas market?
Industry concentration increased through large acquisitions, including Chevron’s completed purchase of Hess and ExxonMobil’s acquisition of Pioneer, though comparable global concentration data were not identified.
What compliance change affects methane reporting for fossil imports?
The EU methane regulation took effect in August 2024 for crude oil, natural gas and coal imports, and in November 2026 the Council agreed to postpone specific importer monitoring obligations to January 1, 2028.
Reference

Cite This Report

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APA
Samuel Norberg. (2026, November 11). Fossil Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/fossil-industry-statistics
MLA
Samuel Norberg. "Fossil Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 11 Nov 2026, https://gitnux.org/fossil-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Samuel Norberg. 2026. "Fossil Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/fossil-industry-statistics.

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