BP, Chevron, Shell, ExxonMobil, and Total Energies all earned $219 billion in 2022.

All these major oil companies benefited from the surge in oil and gas prices that followed Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

This marks a turnaround for the oil and gas industry, as they suffered profit losses in 2020/2021 following a reduced demand for energy during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Liam Dann, NZ Herald business editor at large says this is good news for the investors, but bad news for the future of renewable energy.

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