Australia vs South Africa: Coal production
Australia
3,024 terawatt-hours
in 2025
South Africa
1,552 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Australia rank
6th
South Africa rank
8th
Coal production over time
- Australia
- South Africa
How they compare
Australia currently reports 3,024 terawatt-hours against 1,552 terawatt-hours in South Africa, a difference of 1,472 terawatt-hours.
That makes Australia's figure about 1.9 times South Africa's.
The two have swapped places 6 times across 126 shared years of data; in 1900 it was Australia ahead.
Australia ranks 6th and South Africa ranks 8th of 216 countries.
Across the 13 decades both report, Australia averaged higher in 7 and South Africa in 6.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Australia | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 52.1 terawatt-hours | 26.03 terawatt-hours | 26.07 terawatt-hours | Australia |
| 1910s | 73.1 terawatt-hours | 56.53 terawatt-hours | 16.57 terawatt-hours | Australia |
| 1920s | 86.27 terawatt-hours | 79.24 terawatt-hours | 7.03 terawatt-hours | Australia |
| 1930s | 77.08 terawatt-hours | 89.66 terawatt-hours | 12.58 terawatt-hours | South Africa |
| 1940s | 107.25 terawatt-hours | 148.5 terawatt-hours | 41.25 terawatt-hours | South Africa |
| 1950s | 150.83 terawatt-hours | 210.96 terawatt-hours | 60.13 terawatt-hours | South Africa |
| 1960s | 244.66 terawatt-hours | 307.71 terawatt-hours | 63.05 terawatt-hours | South Africa |
| 1970s | 461.47 terawatt-hours | 489.69 terawatt-hours | 28.22 terawatt-hours | South Africa |
| 1980s | 986.79 terawatt-hours | 1,055 terawatt-hours | 67.94 terawatt-hours | South Africa |
| 1990s | 1,598 terawatt-hours | 1,321 terawatt-hours | 277.28 terawatt-hours | Australia |
| 2000s | 2,431 terawatt-hours | 1,530 terawatt-hours | 900.54 terawatt-hours | Australia |
| 2010s | 3,385 terawatt-hours | 1,685 terawatt-hours | 1,700 terawatt-hours | Australia |
| 2020s | 3,258 terawatt-hours | 1,552 terawatt-hours | 1,706 terawatt-hours | Australia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher coal production, Australia or South Africa?
- Australia, at 3,024 terawatt-hours against 1,552 terawatt-hours in South Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in coal production between Australia and South Africa?
- 1,472 terawatt-hours, with Australia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and South Africa?
- 126 years are reported by both, from 1900 to 2025.
- How do Australia and South Africa rank globally for coal production?
- Australia ranks 6th and South Africa ranks 8th of 216 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026) and other sources β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Coal production. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured in terawatt-hours.