Saudi Arabia’s state oil company Aramco on March 20 pledged to increase the amount it invests in oil production after it reported that profits more than doubled year-on-year to $110 billion. The world’s largest oil exporter said its net profit increased by 124 percent to $110 billion in 2021, compared with $49 billion a year prior. In an effort to boost production and meet growing demand, Aramco said it would ramp up capital expenditure to $40–50 billion, “with further growth expected until around the middle of the decade.” Capital expenditure in 2021 was $31.9 billion, an 18 percent increase from 2020. “This is in line with the company’s belief that substantial new investment is required to meet demand growth, against a broader decline in upstream investment across the industry globally,” the company said. The company said it would also raise its crude oil “maximum sustainable capacity” to 13 million barrels a day by 2027, and potentially raise gas …