Share of primary energy from nuclear in South Korea
South Korea: Share of primary energy from nuclear was 15.5% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Share of primary energy from nuclear 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 15.5% for share of primary energy from nuclear in 2025.
That represents a change of down 0.6% on the previous year and up 5.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of primary energy from nuclear in South Korea peaked at 16.6% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1965.
That places South Korea 12th out of 216 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of primary energy from nuclear in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 0.0% | — |
| 1966 | 0.0% | — |
| 1967 | 0.0% | — |
| 1968 | 0.0% | — |
| 1969 | 0.0% | — |
| 1970 | 0.0% | — |
| 1971 | 0.0% | — |
| 1972 | 0.0% | — |
| 1973 | 0.0% | — |
| 1974 | 0.0% | — |
| 1975 | 0.0% | — |
| 1976 | 0.0% | — |
| 1977 | 0.1% | — |
| 1978 | 1.9% | +2803.9% |
| 1979 | 2.2% | +17.7% |
| 1980 | 2.3% | +7.0% |
| 1981 | 1.9% | -20.2% |
| 1982 | 2.4% | +29.8% |
| 1983 | 5.3% | +118.3% |
| 1984 | 6.3% | +20.1% |
| 1985 | 8.2% | +28.7% |
| 1986 | 12.3% | +50.1% |
| 1987 | 15.3% | +25.2% |
| 1988 | 14.0% | -9.0% |
| 1989 | 15.2% | +8.7% |
| 1990 | 14.8% | -2.2% |
| 1991 | 13.9% | -6.5% |
| 1992 | 12.4% | -10.7% |
| 1993 | 11.6% | -6.1% |
| 1994 | 10.8% | -6.9% |
| 1995 | 11.4% | +4.7% |
| 1996 | 11.3% | -0.2% |
| 1997 | 10.8% | -4.5% |
| 1998 | 13.8% | +27.1% |
| 1999 | 14.5% | +5.4% |
| 2000 | 14.5% | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 14.6% | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 14.8% | +1.6% |
| 2003 | 15.6% | +5.5% |
| 2004 | 15.3% | -2.0% |
| 2005 | 16.6% | +8.7% |
| 2006 | 16.5% | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 15.4% | -6.4% |
| 2008 | 16.0% | +3.5% |
| 2009 | 15.6% | -2.7% |
| 2010 | 14.5% | -6.7% |
| 2011 | 14.4% | -0.8% |
| 2012 | 13.8% | -3.9% |
| 2013 | 12.8% | -7.5% |
| 2014 | 14.3% | +11.4% |
| 2015 | 14.8% | +3.6% |
| 2016 | 14.0% | -4.9% |
| 2017 | 12.8% | -9.2% |
| 2018 | 11.2% | -11.9% |
| 2019 | 12.4% | +10.7% |
| 2020 | 14.2% | +14.2% |
| 2021 | 13.3% | -6.3% |
| 2022 | 14.6% | +10.0% |
| 2023 | 15.3% | +4.4% |
| 2024 | 15.6% | +2.3% |
| 2025 | 15.5% | -0.6% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of primary energy from nuclear in South Korea 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | +2803.9% | 0.1% | 1.9% |
| 1983 | +118.3% | 2.4% | 5.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 5 |
| 1970s | 0.4% | 0.0% | 2.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 8.3% | 1.9% | 15.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 12.5% | 10.8% | 14.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 15.5% | 14.5% | 16.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.5% | 11.2% | 14.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 14.8% | 13.3% | 15.6% | 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 nuclear in South Korea?
- Share of primary energy from nuclear in South Korea was 15.5% 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 nuclear recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 16.6% in 2005.
- What is the lowest share of primary energy from nuclear recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1965.
- How does South Korea rank for share of primary energy from nuclear?
- South Korea ranks 12th out of 216 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of primary energy from nuclear rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- 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 nuclear. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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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.