Top 10 Largest Oil and Gas Corporations Worldwide

Shell USA, Inc. (formerly Shell Oil Company, Inc.) is a fully owned subsidiary of Shell plc, a multinational oil giant headquartered in the United Kingdom. It stands as one of the largest oil companies in the world. Shell employs around 18,000 people in the United States, with its U.S. headquarters based in Houston, Texas. Shell USA, which includes its subsidiaries and shares in joint ventures, is among the largest producers of oil and natural gas, marketers of natural gas, gasoline, and petrochemical products in America.

Shell leads the market through approximately 14,000 Shell-branded service stations across the U.S., representing the company's most visible presence and nearly covering all 50 states, with Montana being the only state without a Shell station. At these stations, Shell offers diesel fuel, gasoline, and LPG. Shell Oil Company holds a 50/50 partnership with Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil company, Saudi Aramco, in Motiva Enterprises, a joint venture that owns and operates three refineries in the U.S. Gulf Coast. Shell's product range includes oil, fuel, automotive services, as well as exploration, production, and refining of petroleum products.

ConocoPhillips is a U.S.-based multinational corporation engaged in the exploration and production of hydrocarbons. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, within the U.S. Energy Corridor, the company operates in 15 countries, with production activities in the U.S., Norway, Canada, Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Libya, China, and Qatar. Its U.S. operations span Alaska, the Eagle Ford Group, Permian Basin, Bakken Formation, Gulf of Mexico, and Anadarko Basin. About a third of ConocoPhillips' production in the U.S. comes from Alaska, where it operates the Alpine oil field offshore the Colville River, the Kuparuk field, and the Prudhoe Bay field on the North Slope of Alaska.

ConocoPhillips explores, produces, transports, and markets crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, natural gas liquids, and liquefied natural gas worldwide. In 2007, it became the first U.S. oil company to join the U.S. Climate Action Partnership. As of December 31, 2019, the company reported proven reserves of 5.262 billion barrels of oil equivalent. Ranked 156th on the Fortune 500 list, ConocoPhillips was also listed as the 574th largest publicly traded company globally in Forbes Global 2000 in 2021.

TotalEnergies SE is a French multinational integrated oil and energy company founded in 1924. It is one of the seven largest oil companies and operates in over 130 countries. The company covers the entire oil and gas value chain, from exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas to electricity generation, transportation, refining, marketing of petroleum products, as well as trading in oil and crude internationally. TotalEnergies is also a major producer of chemicals. The company is headquartered at Tour Total in La Défense, a district west of Paris.

In the 2020 Forbes Global 2000, TotalEnergies SE was ranked the 29th largest publicly traded company in the world. Additionally, it ranked 25th in the Fortune Global 500 in any business category. As of December 31, 2014, TotalEnergies had 903 consolidated subsidiaries, along with its equity stakes and joint ventures. Furthermore, TotalEnergies holds shareholdings worth approximately 3 billion euros in other investments, mainly related to LPG and LNG exploration, production, and transportation ventures.

China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) is one of China's largest state-owned oil and gas corporations, and one of the largest energy companies globally. Based in Dongcheng District, Beijing, CNPC was ranked 4th on the 2019 Fortune Global 500 list, which ranks the world's largest corporations by revenue. Among China's three state-owned oil companies, PetroChina is the largest and has the highest market capitalization among its industry peers in the stock market.

Founded in 1999, PetroChina is the largest state-controlled oil and gas company in China. In its global expansion strategy, PetroChina has not only targeted the African market but also signed a $50 billion natural gas deal with Australia and invested over $5 billion in developing natural gas projects in Canada. Experts predict that PetroChina will continue to grow into a major player in the oil and gas sector in the coming years. With government support and vast shale reserves in China, PetroChina is expected to expand significantly.

BP is a multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in the UK. Initially focused on the Middle East, BP expanded its operations in 1959 and became the first company to discover oil in the North Sea in 1965, employing 80,300 people. With a revenue of $246.1 billion and a net profit of $16.58 billion, BP has grown significantly since its inception in 1909. The company’s origins trace back to the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, which was established as a subsidiary of Burmah Oil Company to explore oil in Iran. In 1935, the company changed its name to Anglo-Iranian Oil Company and later became British Petroleum in 1954.

At various points, BP was the second-largest oil company in the world. BP operates in all sectors of the oil and gas industry, including exploration, production, refining, distribution, marketing, and petrochemicals. It also has significant operations in renewable energy sectors such as biofuels and wind power. BP’s primary products include gasoline, natural gas, motor fuels, aviation fuels, and petrochemicals. However, following the 2010 oil spill disaster, BP sold several assets to pay $4.5 billion in fines and legal fees.

Equinor is a Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger. Primarily an oil and gas firm, Equinor operates in 36 countries, with additional investments in renewable energy. Ranked 169th in the 2020 Forbes Global 2000, the company employed 21,126 people as of 2021. Equinor is the largest operator on the Norwegian continental shelf, responsible for 60% of the country's total oil and gas production. The company has processing plants in Belgium, Denmark, France, and Germany. In 2006, Statoil, as it was known then, launched the world's largest carbon capture project to reduce carbon emissions.

Equinor was formed in 2007 by merging Statoil with Norsk Hydro's oil and gas division. As of 2017, the Norwegian government is the largest shareholder, holding 67% of the shares, with the remainder publicly traded. The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy manages the ownership. The company's headquarters and leadership are based in Stavanger, while most of its international operations are directed from Fornebu, near Oslo. Equinor is a partner in the Peregrino oil field off the coast of Brazil, which began operations in 2011. The company also operates fuel stations under the Statoil brand, along with fully automated stations branded as 1-2-3, and some stations under the Ingo brand in Denmark and Sweden.

Enbridge Inc. is a multinational energy and pipeline company based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It owns and operates pipelines across Canada and the United States, transporting crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids. Enbridge’s pipeline system is the longest in North America and the largest oil export pipeline network globally. Its crude oil system spans 28,661 kilometers, while its natural gas pipeline network extends over 38,300 kilometers, connecting various provinces in Canada, several U.S. states, and the Gulf of Mexico.

Founded in 1949 by Imperial Oil as Interprovincial Pipe Line Company to transport Alberta’s oil to refineries, Enbridge expanded over time through acquisitions of other pipeline companies and the development of its projects. Between 2012 and 2021, Enbridge transported more than 32 billion barrels of crude oil. The company has also developed several renewable energy projects in North America and Europe, including wind, solar, hydro, and geothermal power, with a goal to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Enbridge was ranked 144th in the Forbes Global 2000 and 418th in the Fortune Global 500 in 2022.

Saudi Arabia has an economy heavily reliant on oil and gas, with the government exercising strict control over the economy, and Saudi Aramco is a state-owned corporation. As of 2003, OPEC reported that Saudi Aramco possesses the world’s largest proven oil reserves, accounting for 24% of global reserves, making it the world’s wealthiest company. Their largest oil field, Ghawar, produces up to 5 million barrels of oil per day. Oil and gas contribute nearly 70% of the country's income, 40% of GDP, and 90% of export revenues. The company continues to develop new oil fields, boosting the nation's per capita income. Recently, Malaysia's Prime Minister announced a $7 billion investment into a refinery and petrochemical project with Saudi Aramco in southern Johor. Saudi Aramco's 2016 IPO is expected to usher in a new era for Saudi Arabia’s economy, a country with the highest crude oil production in OPEC.

The proceeds from this IPO are intended to fund Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 strategy, spearheaded by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, aimed at diversifying the country’s economy away from oil dependence while signaling to multinational corporations and foreign investors that Saudi Arabia remains open for business. With daily revenues surpassing $1 billion and holding the world’s largest oil reserves, Saudi Aramco leads the global oil industry. The history of Saudi Aramco dates back to the 1930s when the Saudi government granted exploration rights to the American company Standard Oil of California. After several unsuccessful attempts, the Arabian-American Oil Company (Aramco) was formed by 1944. However, control of the company was not fully in Saudi hands until the 1980s, when the country took complete ownership and renamed it Saudi Aramco. The company, headquartered in Dhahran, operates across various sectors including exploration, production, refining, petrochemicals, and distribution.

ExxonMobil is a multinational oil and gas corporation based in Irving, Texas. The origins of ExxonMobil trace back to the Standard Oil company founded by John D. Rockefeller. In 1911, due to antitrust laws, Rockefeller was forced to split Standard Oil into two companies: Standard Oil of New Jersey and Standard Oil of New York. Over time, these companies were rebranded as Exxon and Mobil. In 1999, Exxon and Mobil merged to form the world’s largest oil company at the time. ExxonMobil’s budget for exploration and production reached a record-breaking $20 billion in 2009, with half of it dedicated to existing oil wells and projects expected to come online in the following years.

Exxon Mobil Corporation is a U.S.-based multinational corporation with the highest revenue globally, reaching $404.5 billion in 2007, and a profit of $40.6 billion. Exxon Mobil’s market capitalization also topped the global charts at $517.92 billion. Formed from the merger of Exxon and Mobil in 1999, the company employs 106,000 people and operates 37 refineries across 21 countries, making it the world’s leader in oil revenue. Currently, ExxonMobil is investing in the leasing of Noble self-lifting rigs to cap and decommission offshore wells in Canada. The company is expected to continue its high growth trajectory in the coming years.

Chevron Corporation (commonly known as Chevron) is a multinational energy conglomerate based in San Ramon, California, with operations in over 180 countries. Chevron’s operations include: exploration, extraction, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas, refining, and the marketing and distribution of fuel for transportation and other energy products. The company is also involved in producing petrochemical products, generating electricity and geothermal energy, providing energy efficiency solutions, and developing future energy sources such as biofuels and other forms of renewable energy. Chevron’s products are sold under three major brands: Chevron, Texaco, and Caltex.

Chevron operates across all sectors related to the oil, gas, and thermal power industries. After acquiring Atlas Petroleum for $4.3 billion in 2010, Chevron expanded further by purchasing Texaco in 2011. Chevron is regarded as one of the six modern supermajors in the oil and gas sector, alongside companies like Royal Dutch Shell, BP, Exxon Mobil, Total, and ConocoPhillips. The company ranks as the third-largest public corporation in the U.S. and the sixteenth-largest globally. In 2010, the company acquired Atlas Petroleum to gain access to shale oil reserves in the Marcellus and Utica formations.