Share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources in South Africa
South Africa: Share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources was 9.0% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources in South Africa, 1990–2023
Source: United Nations Statistics Division and International Energy Agency and International Renewable Energy Agency – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 9.0% for share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources in 2023.
That represents a change of up 2.6% on the previous year and up 25.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources in South Africa peaked at 21.2% in 1993 and was at its lowest, 6.9%, in 2015.
That places South Africa 156th out of 230 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 19.2% | — |
| 1991 | 20.1% | +4.5% |
| 1992 | 21.0% | +4.6% |
| 1993 | 21.2% | +1.0% |
| 1994 | 20.5% | -3.3% |
| 1995 | 20.6% | +0.6% |
| 1996 | 19.8% | -3.9% |
| 1997 | 19.9% | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 20.0% | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 20.4% | +1.7% |
| 2000 | 12.4% | -39.0% |
| 2001 | 12.0% | -3.5% |
| 2002 | 11.6% | -3.1% |
| 2003 | 10.2% | -11.9% |
| 2004 | 9.2% | -9.8% |
| 2005 | 8.9% | -3.5% |
| 2006 | 8.9% | -0.6% |
| 2007 | 8.2% | -7.1% |
| 2008 | 8.3% | +0.8% |
| 2009 | 7.3% | -12.2% |
| 2010 | 7.9% | +8.4% |
| 2011 | 7.8% | -1.4% |
| 2012 | 7.4% | -5.3% |
| 2013 | 7.2% | -2.6% |
| 2014 | 7.0% | -3.2% |
| 2015 | 6.9% | -1.0% |
| 2016 | 7.1% | +3.2% |
| 2017 | 7.0% | -1.1% |
| 2018 | 7.4% | +4.5% |
| 2019 | 7.8% | +5.3% |
| 2020 | 8.2% | +5.4% |
| 2021 | 8.2% | +0.9% |
| 2022 | 8.8% | +6.4% |
| 2023 | 9.0% | +2.6% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 9.0% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 12.9%, 70% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 9.0% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 66.9%, 13% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources in South Africa 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | -39.0% | 20.4% | 12.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 20.3% | 19.2% | 21.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 9.7% | 7.3% | 12.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.3% | 6.9% | 7.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 8.5% | 8.2% | 9.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 153 Cuba 9.2% compare
- 154 Faroe Islands 9.2% compare
- 155 Grenada 9.1% compare
- 157 Malta 8.8% compare
- 158 Saint Lucia 8.7% compare
- 159 East Timor 8.5% compare
More energy & mining data for South Africa
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate -0.3095 % 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)
- Fuel imports 17.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources in South Africa?
- Share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources in South Africa was 9.0% in 2023, according to United Nations Statistics Division and International Energy Agency and International Renewable Energy Agency – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 21.2% in 1993.
- What is the lowest share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.9% in 2015.
- How does South Africa rank for share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources?
- South Africa ranks 156th out of 230 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 25.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division and International Energy Agency and International Renewable Energy Agency – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Renewable energy share in the total final energy consumption (%).