Share of primary energy from coal in South Korea
South Korea: Share of primary energy from coal was 22.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
22.0%
Change on year
up 1.7%
World rank
19th
of 79 countries
All-time high
78.4%
in 1965
All-time low
19.2%
in 1995
Years of data
61
1965–2025
Share of primary energy from coal in South Korea, 1965–2025
Source: Energy Institute – Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); U.S. Energy Information Administration (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 22.0% for share of primary energy from coal in 2025.
The figure is up 1.7% on the previous year and down 25.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of primary energy from coal in South Korea peaked at 78.4% in 1965 and was at its lowest, 19.2%, in 1995.
South Korea ranks 19th of 79 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 61 years of available data.
Share of primary energy from coal in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 78.4% | — |
| 1966 | 73.4% | -6.4% |
| 1967 | 60.7% | -17.2% |
| 1968 | 49.9% | -17.8% |
| 1969 | 43.3% | -13.2% |
| 1970 | 39.7% | -8.5% |
| 1971 | 37.0% | -6.6% |
| 1972 | 36.6% | -1.1% |
| 1973 | 37.3% | +1.9% |
| 1974 | 37.2% | -0.3% |
| 1975 | 35.6% | -4.2% |
| 1976 | 35.5% | -0.4% |
| 1977 | 33.6% | -5.4% |
| 1978 | 30.3% | -9.7% |
| 1979 | 31.5% | +3.9% |
| 1980 | 34.0% | +8.1% |
| 1981 | 37.7% | +10.6% |
| 1982 | 38.0% | +0.9% |
| 1983 | 37.3% | -1.9% |
| 1984 | 41.0% | +10.0% |
| 1985 | 41.2% | +0.5% |
| 1986 | 38.8% | -6.0% |
| 1987 | 35.4% | -8.7% |
| 1988 | 33.6% | -5.1% |
| 1989 | 30.1% | -10.4% |
| 1990 | 27.2% | -9.8% |
| 1991 | 24.5% | -9.9% |
| 1992 | 21.1% | -13.9% |
| 1993 | 21.1% | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 20.3% | -3.9% |
| 1995 | 19.2% | -5.4% |
| 1996 | 20.2% | +5.1% |
| 1997 | 19.6% | -2.9% |
| 1998 | 22.0% | +12.6% |
| 1999 | 21.4% | -3.0% |
| 2000 | 22.6% | +5.7% |
| 2001 | 23.4% | +3.7% |
| 2002 | 24.0% | +2.4% |
| 2003 | 24.1% | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 24.8% | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 24.4% | -1.6% |
| 2006 | 24.7% | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 25.3% | +2.4% |
| 2008 | 27.6% | +9.1% |
| 2009 | 28.5% | +3.3% |
| 2010 | 29.5% | +3.8% |
| 2011 | 30.8% | +4.2% |
| 2012 | 29.2% | -5.1% |
| 2013 | 29.2% | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 29.8% | +1.9% |
| 2015 | 29.4% | -1.2% |
| 2016 | 27.7% | -5.9% |
| 2017 | 29.1% | +5.2% |
| 2018 | 29.4% | +0.9% |
| 2019 | 28.1% | -4.5% |
| 2020 | 25.8% | -7.9% |
| 2021 | 25.3% | -2.2% |
| 2022 | 24.0% | -5.1% |
| 2023 | 23.6% | -1.5% |
| 2024 | 21.6% | -8.3% |
| 2025 | 22.0% | +1.7% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 22.0% is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.9%, 7.5× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 22.0% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 24.6%, 90% of the median. (12 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 61.2% | 43.3% | 78.4% | 5 |
| 1970s | 35.4% | 30.3% | 39.7% | 10 |
| 1980s | 36.7% | 30.1% | 41.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 21.6% | 19.2% | 27.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 24.9% | 22.6% | 28.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 29.2% | 27.7% | 30.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 23.7% | 21.6% | 25.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More energy & mining data for South Korea
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate -1.55 % change on previous year (2025)
- Coal consumption, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal consumption, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per capita 0.0001 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal production, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal production, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Fuel imports 25.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of primary energy from coal in South Korea?
- Share of primary energy from coal in South Korea was 22.0% in 2025, according to Energy Institute – Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); U.S. Energy Information Administration (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of primary energy from coal recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 78.4% in 1965.
- What is the lowest share of primary energy from coal recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 19.2% in 1995.
- How does South Korea rank for share of primary energy from coal?
- South Korea ranks 19th out of 79 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of primary energy from coal rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 25.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures 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 part of Share of primary energy from coal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 61 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Measured as a percentage of total energy supply.