Chile vs South Africa: Primary energy use by source
Chile
12.2 terawatt-hours
in 2025
South Africa
11.3 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Chile rank
26th
South Africa rank
28th
Primary energy use by source over time
- Chile
- South Africa
How they compare
Chile currently reports 12.2 terawatt-hours against 11.3 terawatt-hours in South Africa, a difference of 0.9 terawatt-hours.
That makes Chile's figure about 1.1 times South Africa's.
The two have swapped places 5 times across 61 shared years of data; in 1965 it was South Africa ahead.
Chile ranks 26th and South Africa ranks 28th of 79 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, Chile averaged higher in 1 and South Africa in 2.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Chile | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1970s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1980s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1990s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | — |
| 2000s | 0.0168 terawatt-hours | 0.0105 terawatt-hours | 0.0063 terawatt-hours | Chile |
| 2010s | 1.97 terawatt-hours | 2.86 terawatt-hours | 0.887 terawatt-hours | South Africa |
| 2020s | 9.12 terawatt-hours | 9.79 terawatt-hours | 0.6649 terawatt-hours | South Africa |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use by source, Chile or South Africa?
- Chile, at 12.2 terawatt-hours against 11.3 terawatt-hours in South Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy use by source between Chile and South Africa?
- 0.9 terawatt-hours, with Chile ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Chile and South Africa?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do Chile and South Africa rank globally for primary energy use by source?
- Chile ranks 26th and South Africa ranks 28th of 79 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 Primary energy use by source. 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.