Net electricity imports in United Kingdom

United Kingdom: Net electricity imports was 29.07 terawatt-hours in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
29.07 terawatt-hours
Change on year
down 12.4%
World rank
3rd
of 214 countries
All-time high
33.19 terawatt-hours
in 2024
All-time low
-4.3 terawatt-hours
in 2022
Years of data
106
1920–2025

Net electricity imports in United Kingdom, 1920–2025

0102030192019722025

Source: Ember (2026); Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy of the UK (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in terawatt-hours.

Analysis

In 2025, net electricity imports in United Kingdom stood at 29.07 terawatt-hours.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 12.4% on the previous year and up 37.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, net electricity imports in United Kingdom peaked at 33.19 terawatt-hours in 2024 and was at its lowest, -4.3 terawatt-hours, in 2022.

United Kingdom ranks 3rd of 214 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1920s 0 terawatt-hours 0 terawatt-hours 0 terawatt-hours 10
1930s 0 terawatt-hours 0 terawatt-hours 0 terawatt-hours 10
1940s 0 terawatt-hours 0 terawatt-hours 0 terawatt-hours 10
1950s -0.0015 terawatt-hours -0.002 terawatt-hours 0 terawatt-hours 10
1960s 0.1781 terawatt-hours -0.211 terawatt-hours 0.73 terawatt-hours 10
1970s 0.116 terawatt-hours -0.1 terawatt-hours 0.55 terawatt-hours 10
1980s 4.07 terawatt-hours 0 terawatt-hours 12.63 terawatt-hours 10
1990s 15.52 terawatt-hours 11.94 terawatt-hours 16.89 terawatt-hours 10
2000s 7.76 terawatt-hours 2.16 terawatt-hours 14.17 terawatt-hours 10
2010s 14.96 terawatt-hours 2.66 terawatt-hours 21.17 terawatt-hours 10
2020s 20.71 terawatt-hours -4.3 terawatt-hours 33.19 terawatt-hours 6

Countries ranked near United Kingdom

  1. 1 Italy 46.9 terawatt-hours compare
  2. 2 Thailand 36.86 terawatt-hours compare
  3. 4 Germany 19.8 terawatt-hours compare
  4. 5 United States 16.02 terawatt-hours compare
  5. 6 Bangladesh 14.66 terawatt-hours compare

See the full ranking of 214 places →

More energy & mining data for United Kingdom

All data for United Kingdom →

Frequently asked questions

What is net electricity imports in United Kingdom?
Net electricity imports in United Kingdom was 29.07 terawatt-hours in 2025, according to Ember (2026); Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy of the UK (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest net electricity imports recorded in United Kingdom?
The highest recorded value was 33.19 terawatt-hours in 2024.
What is the lowest net electricity imports recorded in United Kingdom?
The lowest recorded value was -4.3 terawatt-hours in 2022.
How does United Kingdom rank for net electricity imports?
United Kingdom ranks 3rd out of 214 countries with data for 2025.
Is net electricity imports rising or falling in United Kingdom?
Over the last ten years it is up 37.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
The figures come from Ember (2026); Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy of the UK (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Net electricity imports. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 106 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Net electricity imports
Unit
terawatt-hours
Source
Ember (2026); Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy of the UK (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
214 places, 5,787 data points, 1920–2025
Last refreshed

Electricity imports minus exports, measured in terawatt-hours.