Mexico vs South Africa: Primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables
Mexico
1.4%
in 2025
South Africa
2.3%
in 2025
Mexico rank
29th
South Africa rank
26th
Primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables over time
- Mexico
- South Africa
How they compare
South Africa currently reports 2.3% against 1.4% in Mexico, a difference of 0.9%.
That makes South Africa's figure about 1.7 times Mexico's.
Across all 61 years both countries report, South Africa has been ahead every year.
Mexico ranks 29th and South Africa ranks 26th of 216 countries.
South Africa has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Mexico | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1970s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1980s | 0.0% | 1.4% | 1.4% | South Africa |
| 1990s | 1.3% | 2.9% | 1.6% | South Africa |
| 2000s | 1.6% | 2.8% | 1.2% | South Africa |
| 2010s | 1.5% | 2.9% | 1.4% | South Africa |
| 2020s | 1.6% | 2.4% | 0.7% | South Africa |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables, Mexico or South Africa?
- South Africa, at 2.3% against 1.4% in Mexico as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables between Mexico and South Africa?
- 0.9%, with South Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Mexico and South Africa?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do Mexico and South Africa rank globally for primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables?
- Mexico ranks 29th and South Africa ranks 26th of 216 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 from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured as a percentage of total energy supply.