South Africa vs Spain: Primary energy use
South Africa
1,398 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Spain
1,444 terawatt-hours
in 2025
South Africa rank
22nd
Spain rank
21st
Primary energy use over time
- South Africa
- Spain
How they compare
Spain currently reports 1,444 terawatt-hours against 1,398 terawatt-hours in South Africa, a difference of 46 terawatt-hours.
The two have swapped places 7 times across 61 shared years of data; in 1965 it was South Africa ahead.
South Africa ranks 22nd and Spain ranks 21st of 215 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, South Africa averaged higher in 1 and Spain in 6.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | Spain | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 375.31 terawatt-hours | 362.07 terawatt-hours | 13.25 terawatt-hours | South Africa |
| 1970s | 526.04 terawatt-hours | 655.93 terawatt-hours | 129.89 terawatt-hours | Spain |
| 1980s | 873.25 terawatt-hours | 895.91 terawatt-hours | 22.66 terawatt-hours | Spain |
| 1990s | 1,092 terawatt-hours | 1,180 terawatt-hours | 87.94 terawatt-hours | Spain |
| 2000s | 1,304 terawatt-hours | 1,622 terawatt-hours | 318.71 terawatt-hours | Spain |
| 2010s | 1,423 terawatt-hours | 1,477 terawatt-hours | 54.12 terawatt-hours | Spain |
| 2020s | 1,353 terawatt-hours | 1,386 terawatt-hours | 33.16 terawatt-hours | Spain |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use, South Africa or Spain?
- Spain, at 1,444 terawatt-hours against 1,398 terawatt-hours in South Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy use between South Africa and Spain?
- 46 terawatt-hours, with Spain ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Spain?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do South Africa and Spain rank globally for primary energy use?
- South Africa ranks 22nd and Spain ranks 21st of 215 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); U.S. Energy Information Administration (2026) β 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.