Share of primary energy use by source in Bulgaria
Bulgaria: Share of primary energy use by source was 13.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of primary energy use by source in Bulgaria, 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
Bulgaria recorded 13.9% for share of primary energy use by source in 2025.
That represents a change of down 2.9% on the previous year and up 0.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of primary energy use by source in Bulgaria peaked at 20.4% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 1965.
Bulgaria ranks 58th of 77 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 61 years of available data.
Share of primary energy use by source in Bulgaria, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 0.5% | — |
| 1966 | 0.7% | +38.9% |
| 1967 | 1.8% | +160.9% |
| 1968 | 2.4% | +35.4% |
| 1969 | 2.2% | -6.3% |
| 1970 | 1.8% | -19.7% |
| 1971 | 1.3% | -24.8% |
| 1972 | 0.9% | -34.6% |
| 1973 | 0.9% | -2.7% |
| 1974 | 1.8% | +110.4% |
| 1975 | 4.3% | +140.3% |
| 1976 | 7.2% | +65.3% |
| 1977 | 8.7% | +21.4% |
| 1978 | 8.9% | +2.5% |
| 1979 | 9.2% | +3.3% |
| 1980 | 11.2% | +21.9% |
| 1981 | 12.4% | +10.2% |
| 1982 | 13.3% | +7.5% |
| 1983 | 13.9% | +4.5% |
| 1984 | 14.7% | +5.7% |
| 1985 | 16.0% | +9.2% |
| 1986 | 15.6% | -2.5% |
| 1987 | 17.3% | +10.8% |
| 1988 | 16.4% | -5.2% |
| 1989 | 17.0% | +4.0% |
| 1990 | 19.4% | +14.2% |
| 1991 | 20.4% | +5.0% |
| 1992 | 19.2% | -6.0% |
| 1993 | 16.7% | -13.0% |
| 1994 | 17.3% | +3.5% |
| 1995 | 19.5% | +12.8% |
| 1996 | 20.1% | +2.9% |
| 1997 | 16.9% | -15.7% |
| 1998 | 14.8% | -12.7% |
| 1999 | 14.6% | -1.4% |
| 2000 | 15.8% | +8.5% |
| 2001 | 12.7% | -19.6% |
| 2002 | 11.6% | -8.5% |
| 2003 | 12.0% | +3.1% |
| 2004 | 12.1% | +1.0% |
| 2005 | 14.0% | +15.7% |
| 2006 | 14.1% | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 14.6% | +3.7% |
| 2008 | 14.7% | +0.8% |
| 2009 | 12.1% | -18.0% |
| 2010 | 12.9% | +6.9% |
| 2011 | 13.7% | +5.7% |
| 2012 | 13.5% | -0.9% |
| 2013 | 14.3% | +5.9% |
| 2014 | 13.3% | -7.3% |
| 2015 | 13.8% | +4.1% |
| 2016 | 14.9% | +8.1% |
| 2017 | 14.9% | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 14.1% | -4.9% |
| 2019 | 13.5% | -4.9% |
| 2020 | 15.0% | +11.7% |
| 2021 | 15.2% | +0.9% |
| 2022 | 12.0% | -21.1% |
| 2023 | 13.1% | +9.6% |
| 2024 | 14.3% | +9.1% |
| 2025 | 13.9% | -2.9% |
Bulgaria compared with similar countries
- Bulgaria's 13.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 24.7%, 56% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Bulgaria's 13.9% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 24.9%, 56% of the median. (37 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of primary energy use by source in Bulgaria 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | +160.9% | 0.7% | 1.8% |
| 1975 | +140.3% | 1.8% | 4.3% |
| 1974 | +110.4% | 0.9% | 1.8% |
| 1976 | +65.3% | 4.3% | 7.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.5% | 0.5% | 2.4% | 5 |
| 1970s | 4.5% | 0.9% | 9.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 14.8% | 11.2% | 17.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 17.9% | 14.6% | 20.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 13.4% | 11.6% | 15.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.9% | 12.9% | 14.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.9% | 12.0% | 15.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Bulgaria
More energy & mining data for Bulgaria
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate 2.05 % 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 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 12.3% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of primary energy use by source in Bulgaria?
- Share of primary energy use by source in Bulgaria was 13.9% 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 use by source recorded in Bulgaria?
- The highest recorded value was 20.4% in 1991.
- What is the lowest share of primary energy use by source recorded in Bulgaria?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 1965.
- How does Bulgaria rank for share of primary energy use by source?
- Bulgaria ranks 58th out of 77 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of primary energy use by source rising or falling in Bulgaria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Bulgaria 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 use by source. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Measured as a percentage of total energy supply.