Share of primary energy that comes from nuclear and renewables in South Korea
South Korea: Share of primary energy that comes from nuclear and renewables was 15.5% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Share of primary energy that comes from nuclear and renewables 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
The most recent figure for share of primary energy that comes from nuclear and renewables in South Korea is 15.5%, measured 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 that comes from nuclear and renewables in South Korea peaked at 16.6% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1965.
South Korea ranks 12th of 216 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of primary energy that comes from nuclear and renewables 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 that comes from nuclear and renewables 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 that comes from nuclear and renewables in South Korea?
- Share of primary energy that comes from nuclear and renewables 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 that comes from nuclear and renewables recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 16.6% in 2005.
- What is the lowest share of primary energy that comes from nuclear and renewables recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1965.
- How does South Korea rank for share of primary energy that comes from nuclear and renewables?
- South Korea ranks 12th out of 216 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of primary energy that comes from nuclear and renewables 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 that comes from nuclear and renewables. 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.