North Korea vs Portugal: Primary energy use
North Korea
193.47 terawatt-hours
in 2024
Portugal
218.05 terawatt-hours
in 2025
North Korea rank
69th
Portugal rank
66th
Primary energy use over time
- North Korea
- Portugal
How they compare
Portugal currently reports 218.05 terawatt-hours against 193.47 terawatt-hours in North Korea, a difference of 24.58 terawatt-hours.
That makes Portugal's figure about 1.1 times North Korea's.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 45 shared years of data; in 1980 it was North Korea ahead.
North Korea ranks 69th and Portugal ranks 66th of 219 countries.
Across the 5 decades both report, North Korea averaged higher in 3 and Portugal in 2.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | North Korea | Portugal | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 286.22 terawatt-hours | 136.58 terawatt-hours | 149.64 terawatt-hours | North Korea |
| 1990s | 284.86 terawatt-hours | 220.34 terawatt-hours | 64.52 terawatt-hours | North Korea |
| 2000s | 280.24 terawatt-hours | 273.32 terawatt-hours | 6.92 terawatt-hours | North Korea |
| 2010s | 171.44 terawatt-hours | 254.59 terawatt-hours | 83.16 terawatt-hours | Portugal |
| 2020s | 192.57 terawatt-hours | 221.12 terawatt-hours | 28.55 terawatt-hours | Portugal |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use, North Korea or Portugal?
- Portugal, at 218.05 terawatt-hours against 193.47 terawatt-hours in North Korea as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy use between North Korea and Portugal?
- 24.58 terawatt-hours, with Portugal ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for North Korea and Portugal?
- 45 years are reported by both, from 1980 to 2024.
- How do North Korea and Portugal rank globally for primary energy use?
- North Korea ranks 69th and Portugal ranks 66th of 219 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); U.S. Energy Information Administration (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Primary energy use. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured in terawatt-hours of total energy supply.