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DHAHRAN, Saudi Arabia—Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company is likely to increase its production to meet rising demand this year, its chief executive said, as the company begins an expansion that includes a partial IPO and new refining capabilities.

“We’re seeing a global increase in demand,” Amin Nasser, the chief executive of Saudi Arabian Oil Co., known as Saudi Aramco, said at a news briefing Tuesday at the company’s headquarters. “We are meeting that call on us.”

Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest exporter of crude oil, is already pumping at near-record levels of about 10.2 million barrels a day. That output was part of an overall Saudi strategy for dealing with oil prices that collapsed more than 70% from June 2014 to January 2016: Pump flat out and compete with other countries for crude buyers.

The country no longer regulates its production levels to keep global supply and demand in balance and stabilize prices.

Mr. Nasser’s comments suggest the kingdom’s oil company isn’t changing course. Saudi Arabia’s output tends to increase in the summer to deal with rising air-conditioner use when temperatures in the kingdom reach scorching levels, but Mr. Nasser said Aramco would pump more to meet demand elsewhere, particularly in the U.S. and India.

Mr. Nasser said Aramco expected demand to increase by about 1.2 million barrels a day across the world this year, in line with other analysts’ estimates.

The CEO’s remarks come in the midst of great change for Saudi Arabia’s oil policy. A new oil minister, Khalid al-Falih, was recently named to succeed long-serving predecessor Ali al-Naimi amid a plan to move the kingdom’s economy away from its dependence on oil.

Saudi Arabia plans a public listing of up to 5% of Aramco in Riyadh and possibly other markets, potentially raising more than $100 billion and opening the company’s finances and reserves to more scrutiny.

The company would share more information as required for an initial public offering, but production levels are a “sovereign decision,” Mr. Nasser said.

The options include a share listing in Saudi Arabia, a dual listing with a foreign market, and listings in more than two places, Mr. Nasser said. Saudi officials have previously said New York, London and Hong Kong are potential options for a listing.

Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company by output, is planning to expand as other big energy companies scale back during a period of sharply lower crude prices. Royal Dutch Shell PLC, BP PLC and other large independent oil firms have announced spending cutbacks, delayed projects and thousands of layoffs as revenue plummets.

Mr. Nasser declined to give an average figure for crude production this year but said the new output would come mostly from expansions of current fields.

Jim Krane, a fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute where he studies Saudi energy policy, said the kingdom has no choice but to increase production if it wants to protect its share of crude markets and increase its refining capacity. He said the Saudis were also considering the possibility of oil demand falling in the future.

“If the Saudis want to avoid being stuck with most of their reserves stranded underground, the signs now say they better sell it off sooner rather than later,” Mr. Krane said.

Aramco plans to keep its maximum sustainable output capacity of 12 million barrels a day for now, but could expand it in the future if needed, he said. Saudi Arabia’s capacity is a closely watched figure because it shows how much the kingdom could help if there were a sudden shortage of oil supplies from elsewhere in the world.

Saudi Arabia came close to agreeing last month to cap its production at January levels but scuttled the deal with Russia, Venezuela and others at the last minute. Russia is also producing at near-record levels, while Saudi rival Iran is pumping new barrels into the market now that Western sanctions on its nuclear program have been lifted.

Mr. Nasser said global oil supplies and demand, which have been out of whack for almost two years, would come into balance around the end of 2016.

Aramco is looking at potential joint ventures in several countries, including Indonesia, India, the U.S., Vietnam and China, Mr. Nasser said.

“We are looking at the current market status that, even though challenging, is an excellent opportunity for growth,” Mr. Nasser said.

Saudi Arabia is also looking to increase its production of natural gas, with plans to nearly double its output in 10 years, he said. Earlier this year, Mr. Nasser had said Aramco wanted to raise its gas output to 23 billion standard cubic feet a day from about 12 billion cubic feet.

Saudi Aramco also plans to increase its refining capacity to eight million to 10 million barrels a day from its current capacity of about 5.4 million barrels a day. The expansion is part of Aramco’s plan to be the world’s leading energy-chemicals company by 2020 and represents the future of its fossil-fuels business.

Saudi Aramco has a total workforce of 61,907, of which 51,653 are Saudis, making it the largest employer of Saudi nationals in the kingdom. It is working with its suppliers and contractors to create 500,000 new jobs over the next decade, Mr. Nasser said.

Suppliers and contractors have about 35% Saudi employees, but Aramco is aiming for 70% Saudi employees by 2021, he said.