Electricity as a share of primary energy in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Electricity as a share of primary energy was 16.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
16.7%
Change on year
up 4.2%
World rank
47th
of 79 countries
All-time high
17.4%
in 2022
All-time low
7.3%
in 1965
Years of data
61
1965–2025
Electricity as a share of primary energy in United Kingdom, 1965–2025
Source: Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, electricity as a share of primary energy in United Kingdom stood at 16.7%.
The figure is up 4.2% on the previous year and up 9.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, electricity as a share of primary energy in United Kingdom peaked at 17.4% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 7.3%, in 1965.
That places United Kingdom 47th out of 79 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 61 years of available data.
Electricity as a share of primary energy in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 7.3% | — |
| 1966 | 7.6% | +2.9% |
| 1967 | 7.8% | +3.3% |
| 1968 | 8.0% | +3.0% |
| 1969 | 8.3% | +2.8% |
| 1970 | 8.5% | +2.5% |
| 1971 | 8.9% | +5.2% |
| 1972 | 9.0% | +1.4% |
| 1973 | 9.2% | +1.9% |
| 1974 | 9.4% | +1.7% |
| 1975 | 10.0% | +6.3% |
| 1976 | 9.9% | -1.0% |
| 1977 | 9.9% | +0.8% |
| 1978 | 10.1% | +1.8% |
| 1979 | 10.1% | -0.0% |
| 1980 | 10.6% | +4.6% |
| 1981 | 10.7% | +0.7% |
| 1982 | 10.6% | -0.4% |
| 1983 | 10.7% | +1.1% |
| 1984 | 11.0% | +2.2% |
| 1985 | 12.4% | +13.6% |
| 1986 | 12.2% | -1.6% |
| 1987 | 12.3% | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 12.4% | +0.9% |
| 1989 | 12.6% | +1.7% |
| 1990 | 12.7% | +0.9% |
| 1991 | 12.6% | -1.2% |
| 1992 | 12.6% | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 12.5% | -0.7% |
| 1994 | 12.8% | +2.4% |
| 1995 | 13.2% | +2.9% |
| 1996 | 13.1% | -0.9% |
| 1997 | 13.3% | +1.8% |
| 1998 | 13.6% | +2.7% |
| 1999 | 13.9% | +2.0% |
| 2000 | 14.1% | +1.5% |
| 2001 | 14.2% | +0.8% |
| 2002 | 14.7% | +3.0% |
| 2003 | 14.9% | +1.2% |
| 2004 | 14.6% | -1.7% |
| 2005 | 14.6% | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 14.8% | +1.1% |
| 2007 | 15.2% | +2.9% |
| 2008 | 15.2% | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 15.6% | +2.5% |
| 2010 | 15.5% | -0.7% |
| 2011 | 15.9% | +2.7% |
| 2012 | 15.4% | -2.9% |
| 2013 | 15.2% | -1.6% |
| 2014 | 15.3% | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 15.3% | -0.3% |
| 2016 | 15.5% | +1.6% |
| 2017 | 15.6% | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 15.5% | -0.5% |
| 2019 | 15.7% | +1.3% |
| 2020 | 16.8% | +6.7% |
| 2021 | 16.4% | -2.2% |
| 2022 | 17.4% | +5.9% |
| 2023 | 16.4% | -5.6% |
| 2024 | 16.0% | -2.3% |
| 2025 | 16.7% | +4.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 7.8% | 7.3% | 8.3% | 5 |
| 1970s | 9.5% | 8.5% | 10.1% | 10 |
| 1980s | 11.6% | 10.6% | 12.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 13.0% | 12.5% | 13.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 14.8% | 14.1% | 15.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.5% | 15.2% | 15.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.6% | 16.0% | 17.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More energy & mining data for United Kingdom
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate -1.3 % 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 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 8.2% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is electricity as a share of primary energy in United Kingdom?
- Electricity as a share of primary energy in United Kingdom was 16.7% in 2025, according to Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest electricity as a share of primary energy recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 17.4% in 2022.
- What is the lowest electricity as a share of primary energy recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.3% in 1965.
- How does United Kingdom rank for electricity as a share of primary energy?
- United Kingdom ranks 47th out of 79 countries with data for 2025.
- Is electricity as a share of primary energy rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Electricity as a share of primary energy. 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.