Share of electricity generation from hydropower in Iceland
Iceland: Share of electricity generation from hydropower was 70.7% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Share of electricity generation from hydropower in Iceland, 1985–2024
Source: Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of electricity generation from hydropower in Iceland is 70.7%, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of down 0.7% on the previous year and up 0.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of electricity generation from hydropower in Iceland peaked at 95.5% in 1985 and was at its lowest, 68.4%, in 2020.
Iceland ranks 28th of 213 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 40 years of available data.
Share of electricity generation from hydropower in Iceland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 95.5% | — |
| 1986 | 94.7% | -0.8% |
| 1987 | 94.3% | -0.4% |
| 1988 | 94.3% | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 94.1% | -0.2% |
| 1990 | 93.4% | -0.8% |
| 1991 | 93.9% | +0.5% |
| 1992 | 94.8% | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 94.5% | -0.4% |
| 1994 | 94.5% | -0.0% |
| 1995 | 94.0% | -0.5% |
| 1996 | 93.2% | -0.9% |
| 1997 | 93.2% | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 89.5% | -4.0% |
| 1999 | 84.1% | -6.0% |
| 2000 | 82.7% | -1.7% |
| 2001 | 81.8% | -1.1% |
| 2002 | 82.8% | +1.2% |
| 2003 | 83.2% | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 82.7% | -0.6% |
| 2005 | 80.7% | -2.4% |
| 2006 | 73.3% | -9.2% |
| 2007 | 69.9% | -4.7% |
| 2008 | 75.3% | +7.7% |
| 2009 | 72.8% | -3.3% |
| 2010 | 74.7% | +2.7% |
| 2011 | 73.5% | -1.7% |
| 2012 | 70.6% | -3.9% |
| 2013 | 70.9% | +0.4% |
| 2014 | 70.5% | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 73.0% | +3.5% |
| 2016 | 72.0% | -1.3% |
| 2017 | 72.8% | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 69.5% | -4.6% |
| 2019 | 68.9% | -0.9% |
| 2020 | 68.4% | -0.7% |
| 2021 | 70.0% | +2.4% |
| 2022 | 70.2% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 71.2% | +1.5% |
| 2024 | 70.7% | -0.7% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 70.7% is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.0%, 72.0× the median. (75 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 70.7% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 11.5%, 6.2× the median. (51 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 94.6% | 94.1% | 95.5% | 5 |
| 1990s | 92.5% | 84.1% | 94.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 78.5% | 69.9% | 83.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 71.6% | 68.9% | 74.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 70.1% | 68.4% | 71.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More energy & mining data for Iceland
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate -4.9 % 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 0.0002 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 (2024)
- Fuel imports 9.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of electricity generation from hydropower in Iceland?
- Share of electricity generation from hydropower in Iceland was 70.7% in 2024, according to Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of electricity generation from hydropower recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 95.5% in 1985.
- What is the lowest share of electricity generation from hydropower recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 68.4% in 2020.
- How does Iceland rank for share of electricity generation from hydropower?
- Iceland ranks 28th out of 213 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of electricity generation from hydropower rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of electricity generation from hydropower. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Measured as a percentage of total electricity produced in the country or region.