South Africa vs Zambia: Net electricity imports

South Africa
-5.92 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Zambia
-3.12 terawatt-hours
in 2024
South Africa rank
201st
Zambia rank
198th

Net electricity imports over time

  • South Africa
  • Zambia
-50510200020122025

How they compare

Zambia currently reports -3.12 terawatt-hours against -5.92 terawatt-hours in South Africa, a difference of 2.8 terawatt-hours.

The two have swapped places 2 times across 25 shared years of data; in 2000 it was South Africa ahead.

South Africa ranks 201st and Zambia ranks 198th of 214 countries.

Across the 3 decades both report, South Africa averaged higher in 2 and Zambia in 1.

Head to head by decade

Decade South Africa Zambia Difference Ahead
2000s -0.254 terawatt-hours -0.525 terawatt-hours 0.271 terawatt-hours South Africa
2010s -4.18 terawatt-hours -0.47 terawatt-hours 3.71 terawatt-hours Zambia
2020s -2.15 terawatt-hours -2.57 terawatt-hours 0.424 terawatt-hours South Africa

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher net electricity imports, South Africa or Zambia?
Zambia, at -3.12 terawatt-hours against -5.92 terawatt-hours in South Africa as of 2024.
What is the difference in net electricity imports between South Africa and Zambia?
2.8 terawatt-hours, with Zambia ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Zambia?
25 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2024.
How do South Africa and Zambia rank globally for net electricity imports?
South Africa ranks 201st and Zambia ranks 198th of 214 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Ember (2026); Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy of the UK (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Net electricity imports. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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South Africa vs Zambia: Net electricity imports. Statizoid, drawing on Ember (2026); Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy of the UK (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 31 August 2026, from https://energy.statizoid.com/compare/net-electricity-imports/south-africa/zambia/

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About this data

Indicator
Net electricity imports
Unit
terawatt-hours
Source
Ember (2026); Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy of the UK (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
214 places, 5,787 data points, 1920–2025
Last refreshed

Electricity imports minus exports, measured in terawatt-hours.