Ireland vs South Africa: Primary energy use by source
Ireland
12.06 terawatt-hours
in 2025
South Africa
11.3 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Ireland rank
27th
South Africa rank
28th
Primary energy use by source over time
- Ireland
- South Africa
How they compare
Ireland currently reports 12.06 terawatt-hours against 11.3 terawatt-hours in South Africa, a difference of 0.76 terawatt-hours.
That makes Ireland's figure about 1.1 times South Africa's.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 61 shared years of data; in 1965 it was South Africa ahead.
Ireland ranks 27th and South Africa ranks 28th of 79 countries.
Ireland has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Ireland | 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 | 0.0475 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 0.0475 terawatt-hours | Ireland |
| 2000s | 1.23 terawatt-hours | 0.0105 terawatt-hours | 1.21 terawatt-hours | Ireland |
| 2010s | 6.07 terawatt-hours | 2.86 terawatt-hours | 3.21 terawatt-hours | Ireland |
| 2020s | 11.44 terawatt-hours | 9.79 terawatt-hours | 1.65 terawatt-hours | Ireland |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use by source, Ireland or South Africa?
- Ireland, at 12.06 terawatt-hours against 11.3 terawatt-hours in South Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy use by source between Ireland and South Africa?
- 0.76 terawatt-hours, with Ireland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Ireland and South Africa?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do Ireland and South Africa rank globally for primary energy use by source?
- Ireland ranks 27th 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.