China (People’s Republic of) vs USSR: Annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels
China (People’s Republic of)
315.07 terawatt-hours
in 2025
USSR
384.52 terawatt-hours
in 1984
China (People’s Republic of) rank
3rd
USSR rank
2nd
Annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels over time
- China (People’s Republic of)
- USSR
How they compare
USSR currently reports 384.52 terawatt-hours against 315.07 terawatt-hours in China (People’s Republic of), a difference of 69.45 terawatt-hours.
That makes USSR's figure about 1.2 times China (People’s Republic of)'s.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 19 shared years of data; in 1966 it was USSR ahead.
China (People’s Republic of) ranks 3rd and USSR ranks 2nd of 76 countries.
USSR has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China (People’s Republic of) | USSR | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 76.39 terawatt-hours | 342.4 terawatt-hours | 266.02 terawatt-hours | USSR |
| 1970s | 285.18 terawatt-hours | 443.83 terawatt-hours | 158.64 terawatt-hours | USSR |
| 1980s | 160.04 terawatt-hours | 286.71 terawatt-hours | 126.67 terawatt-hours | USSR |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels, China (People’s Republic of) or USSR?
- USSR, at 384.52 terawatt-hours against 315.07 terawatt-hours in China (People’s Republic of) as of 1984.
- What is the difference in annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels between China (People’s Republic of) and USSR?
- 69.45 terawatt-hours, with USSR ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China (People’s Republic of) and USSR?
- 19 years are reported by both, from 1966 to 1984.
- How do China (People’s Republic of) and USSR rank globally for annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels?
- China (People’s Republic of) ranks 3rd and USSR ranks 2nd of 76 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Change in total energy supply relative to the previous year, measured in terawatt-hours.