Electricity generation from coal in Iran
Iran: Electricity generation from coal was 0.73 terawatt-hours in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Electricity generation from coal in Iran, 1985–2025
Source: Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in terawatt-hours.
Analysis
In 2025, electricity generation from coal in Iran stood at 0.73 terawatt-hours.
That represents a change of up 58.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, electricity generation from coal in Iran peaked at 0.81 terawatt-hours in 2019 and was at its lowest, 0.064 terawatt-hours, in 1989.
Iran ranks 63rd of 211 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Electricity generation from coal in Iran, year by year
| Year | terawatt-hours | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 0.088 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1986 | 0.087 terawatt-hours | -1.1% |
| 1987 | 0.085 terawatt-hours | -2.3% |
| 1988 | 0.088 terawatt-hours | +3.5% |
| 1989 | 0.064 terawatt-hours | -27.3% |
| 1990 | 0.065 terawatt-hours | +1.6% |
| 1991 | 0.094 terawatt-hours | +44.6% |
| 1992 | 0.083 terawatt-hours | -11.7% |
| 1993 | 0.096 terawatt-hours | +15.7% |
| 1994 | 0.095 terawatt-hours | -1.0% |
| 1995 | 0.091 terawatt-hours | -4.2% |
| 1996 | 0.092 terawatt-hours | +1.1% |
| 1997 | 0.096 terawatt-hours | +4.3% |
| 1998 | 0.112 terawatt-hours | +16.7% |
| 1999 | 0.417 terawatt-hours | +272.3% |
| 2000 | 0.48 terawatt-hours | +15.1% |
| 2001 | 0.47 terawatt-hours | -2.1% |
| 2002 | 0.52 terawatt-hours | +10.6% |
| 2003 | 0.47 terawatt-hours | -9.6% |
| 2004 | 0.48 terawatt-hours | +2.1% |
| 2005 | 0.57 terawatt-hours | +18.7% |
| 2006 | 0.56 terawatt-hours | -1.8% |
| 2007 | 0.57 terawatt-hours | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 0.39 terawatt-hours | -31.6% |
| 2009 | 0.38 terawatt-hours | -2.6% |
| 2010 | 0.35 terawatt-hours | -7.9% |
| 2011 | 0.43 terawatt-hours | +22.9% |
| 2012 | 0.4 terawatt-hours | -7.0% |
| 2013 | 0.46 terawatt-hours | +15.0% |
| 2014 | 0.53 terawatt-hours | +15.2% |
| 2015 | 0.46 terawatt-hours | -13.2% |
| 2016 | 0.49 terawatt-hours | +6.5% |
| 2017 | 0.69 terawatt-hours | +40.8% |
| 2018 | 0.64 terawatt-hours | -7.2% |
| 2019 | 0.81 terawatt-hours | +26.6% |
| 2020 | 0.8 terawatt-hours | -1.2% |
| 2021 | 0.73 terawatt-hours | -8.8% |
| 2022 | 0.71 terawatt-hours | -2.7% |
| 2023 | 0.71 terawatt-hours | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 0.73 terawatt-hours | +2.8% |
| 2025 | 0.73 terawatt-hours | +0.0% |
Iran compared with similar countries
- Iran's 0.73 terawatt-hours is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.005 terawatt-hours, 146.0× the median. (54 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Electricity generation from coal in Iran changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | +272.3% | 0.112 terawatt-hours | 0.417 terawatt-hours |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.0824 terawatt-hours | 0.064 terawatt-hours | 0.088 terawatt-hours | 5 |
| 1990s | 0.1241 terawatt-hours | 0.065 terawatt-hours | 0.417 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.489 terawatt-hours | 0.38 terawatt-hours | 0.57 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.526 terawatt-hours | 0.35 terawatt-hours | 0.81 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.735 terawatt-hours | 0.71 terawatt-hours | 0.8 terawatt-hours | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iran
More energy & mining data for Iran
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate 0.5768 % 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 (2024)
- Coal production, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Fuel imports 2.0% (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is electricity generation from coal in Iran?
- Electricity generation from coal in Iran was 0.73 terawatt-hours in 2025, according to Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest electricity generation from coal recorded in Iran?
- The highest recorded value was 0.81 terawatt-hours in 2019.
- What is the lowest electricity generation from coal recorded in Iran?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.064 terawatt-hours in 1989.
- How does Iran rank for electricity generation from coal?
- Iran ranks 63rd out of 211 countries with data for 2025.
- Is electricity generation from coal rising or falling in Iran?
- Over the last ten years it is up 58.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Iran 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 generation from coal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 41 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Measured in terawatt-hours.