Primary energy use in Australia
Australia: Primary energy use was 1,536 terawatt-hours in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
1,536 terawatt-hours
Change on year
down 0.4%
World rank
19th
of 219 countries
All-time high
1,595 terawatt-hours
in 2019
All-time low
410.66 terawatt-hours
in 1965
Years of data
61
1965–2025
Primary energy use in Australia, 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 terawatt-hours.
Analysis
In 2025, primary energy use in Australia stood at 1,536 terawatt-hours.
That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and down 0.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, primary energy use in Australia peaked at 1,595 terawatt-hours in 2019 and was at its lowest, 410.66 terawatt-hours, in 1965.
Australia ranks 19th of 219 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 61 years of available data.
Primary energy use in Australia, year by year
| Year | terawatt-hours | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 410.66 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1966 | 431.68 terawatt-hours | +5.1% |
| 1967 | 458.16 terawatt-hours | +6.1% |
| 1968 | 486.09 terawatt-hours | +6.1% |
| 1969 | 505.39 terawatt-hours | +4.0% |
| 1970 | 550.15 terawatt-hours | +8.9% |
| 1971 | 576.25 terawatt-hours | +4.7% |
| 1972 | 603.44 terawatt-hours | +4.7% |
| 1973 | 645.26 terawatt-hours | +6.9% |
| 1974 | 684.68 terawatt-hours | +6.1% |
| 1975 | 694.69 terawatt-hours | +1.5% |
| 1976 | 721.31 terawatt-hours | +3.8% |
| 1977 | 759.39 terawatt-hours | +5.3% |
| 1978 | 782.44 terawatt-hours | +3.0% |
| 1979 | 813.34 terawatt-hours | +4.0% |
| 1980 | 817.83 terawatt-hours | +0.6% |
| 1981 | 830.59 terawatt-hours | +1.6% |
| 1982 | 824.84 terawatt-hours | -0.7% |
| 1983 | 817.78 terawatt-hours | -0.9% |
| 1984 | 845.6 terawatt-hours | +3.4% |
| 1985 | 868.94 terawatt-hours | +2.8% |
| 1986 | 884.89 terawatt-hours | +1.8% |
| 1987 | 910.82 terawatt-hours | +2.9% |
| 1988 | 953.14 terawatt-hours | +4.6% |
| 1989 | 1,002 terawatt-hours | +5.1% |
| 1990 | 1,022 terawatt-hours | +2.0% |
| 1991 | 1,013 terawatt-hours | -0.9% |
| 1992 | 1,029 terawatt-hours | +1.6% |
| 1993 | 1,052 terawatt-hours | +2.2% |
| 1994 | 1,094 terawatt-hours | +3.9% |
| 1995 | 1,124 terawatt-hours | +2.7% |
| 1996 | 1,157 terawatt-hours | +3.0% |
| 1997 | 1,186 terawatt-hours | +2.5% |
| 1998 | 1,215 terawatt-hours | +2.5% |
| 1999 | 1,265 terawatt-hours | +4.1% |
| 2000 | 1,273 terawatt-hours | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 1,283 terawatt-hours | +0.8% |
| 2002 | 1,310 terawatt-hours | +2.0% |
| 2003 | 1,328 terawatt-hours | +1.4% |
| 2004 | 1,373 terawatt-hours | +3.4% |
| 2005 | 1,378 terawatt-hours | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 1,438 terawatt-hours | +4.4% |
| 2007 | 1,476 terawatt-hours | +2.6% |
| 2008 | 1,503 terawatt-hours | +1.8% |
| 2009 | 1,478 terawatt-hours | -1.7% |
| 2010 | 1,473 terawatt-hours | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 1,509 terawatt-hours | +2.4% |
| 2012 | 1,488 terawatt-hours | -1.4% |
| 2013 | 1,500 terawatt-hours | +0.8% |
| 2014 | 1,516 terawatt-hours | +1.1% |
| 2015 | 1,546 terawatt-hours | +2.0% |
| 2016 | 1,542 terawatt-hours | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 1,542 terawatt-hours | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 1,549 terawatt-hours | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 1,595 terawatt-hours | +2.9% |
| 2020 | 1,486 terawatt-hours | -6.8% |
| 2021 | 1,469 terawatt-hours | -1.1% |
| 2022 | 1,525 terawatt-hours | +3.8% |
| 2023 | 1,510 terawatt-hours | -0.9% |
| 2024 | 1,542 terawatt-hours | +2.1% |
| 2025 | 1,536 terawatt-hours | -0.4% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 1,536 terawatt-hours is above the median for high income countries, which is 158.21 terawatt-hours, 9.7× the median. (75 countries reporting)
- Australia's 1,536 terawatt-hours is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 56.44 terawatt-hours, 27.2× the median. (35 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 458.4 terawatt-hours | 410.66 terawatt-hours | 505.39 terawatt-hours | 5 |
| 1970s | 683.1 terawatt-hours | 550.15 terawatt-hours | 813.34 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 1980s | 875.61 terawatt-hours | 817.78 terawatt-hours | 1,002 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 1990s | 1,116 terawatt-hours | 1,013 terawatt-hours | 1,265 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2000s | 1,384 terawatt-hours | 1,273 terawatt-hours | 1,503 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2010s | 1,526 terawatt-hours | 1,473 terawatt-hours | 1,595 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,511 terawatt-hours | 1,469 terawatt-hours | 1,542 terawatt-hours | 6 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 16 Turkey 2,033 terawatt-hours compare
- 17 United Kingdom 1,748 terawatt-hours compare
- 18 Italy 1,537 terawatt-hours compare
- 20 United Arab Emirates 1,460 terawatt-hours compare
- 21 Spain 1,444 terawatt-hours compare
- 22 South Africa 1,398 terawatt-hours compare
More energy & mining data for Australia
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate -0.4235 % 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 0.0001 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 11.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is primary energy use in Australia?
- Primary energy use in Australia was 1,536 terawatt-hours 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 primary energy use recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 1,595 terawatt-hours in 2019.
- What is the lowest primary energy use recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 410.66 terawatt-hours in 1965.
- How does Australia rank for primary energy use?
- Australia ranks 19th out of 219 countries with data for 2025.
- Is primary energy use rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia 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 Primary energy use. 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 in terawatt-hours of total energy supply.