Primož Rome

Wednesday, February 22, 2023 · 0 min read

The Most Common Electricity Source in Each Country

Do you know which sources of electricity are most popular in each country around the world? Most countries rely on traditional sources of energy like coal, gas, and oil, but some countries are beginning to rely on renewable sources like hydropower and solar.

Dewesoft researchers looked at electricity use data from countries around the world to determine the most common sources of electricity for each country as well as the countries that are using the most renewable energy for electricity.

Most common electricity source in each countra infographic

Which electricity source is most common in each country?

The following are the top types of energy sources used for electricity by country according to kilowatt-hours used per capita based on the most recently available data:

  • Afghanistan: Hydropower 

  • Albania: Hydropower 

  • Algeria: Gas

  • American Samoa: Oil

  • Angola: Hydropower 

  • Antigua and Barbuda: Oil

  • Argentina: Gas

  • Armenia: Gas

  • Aruba: Oil

  • Australia: Coal

  • Austria: Hydropower 

  • Azerbaijan: Gas

  • Bahamas: Oil

  • Bahrain: Gas

  • Bangladesh: Gas

  • Barbados: Oil

  • Belarus: Gas

  • Belgium: Nuclear

  • Belize: Hydropower 

  • Benin: Gas

  • Bermuda: Oil

  • Bhutan: Hydropower 

  • Bolivia: Gas

  • Bosnia and Herzegovina: Coal

  • Botswana: Coal

  • Brazil: Hydropower 

  • British Virgin Islands: Oil

  • Brunei: Gas

  • Bulgaria: Nuclear

  • Burkina Faso: Oil

  • Burundi: Hydropower 

  • Cambodia: Hydropower 

  • Cameroon: Hydropower 

  • Canada: Hydropower 

  • Cayman Islands: Oil

  • Central African Republic: Hydropower 

  • Chad: Oil

  • Chile: Hydropower 

  • China: Coal

  • Colombia: Hydropower 

  • Comoros: Oil

  • Congo: Gas

  • Cook Islands: Oil

  • Costa Rica: Hydropower 

  • Croatia: Hydropower 

  • Cuba: Oil

  • Cyprus: Oil

  • Czechia: Coal

  • Democratic Republic of Congo: Hydropower 

  • Denmark: Wind

  • Djibouti: Oil

  • Dominica: Oil

  • Dominican Republic: Oil

  • Ecuador: Hydropower 

  • Egypt: Gas

  • El Salvador: Other Renewable Resource

  • Equatorial Guinea: Gas

  • Eritrea: Oil

  • Estonia: Oil

  • Ethiopia: Hydropower 

  • Falkland Islands: Oil

  • Fiji: Hydropower 

  • Finland: Nuclear

  • France: Nuclear

  • French Guiana: Hydropower 

  • French Polynesia: Oil

  • Gabon: Gas

  • Gambia: Oil

  • Georgia: Hydropower 

  • Germany: Wind

  • Ghana: Gas

  • Gibraltar: Oil

  • Greece: Gas

  • Greenland: Hydropower 

  • Grenada: Oil

  • Guadeloupe: Oil

  • Guam: Oil

  • Guatemala: Hydropower 

  • Guinea: Oil

  • Guinea-Bissau: Oil

  • Guyana: Oil

  • Haiti: Oil

  • Honduras: Hydropower 

  • Hong Kong: Oil

  • Hungary: Nuclear

  • Iceland: Hydropower 

  • India: Coal

  • Indonesia: Coal

  • Iran: Gas

  • Iraq: Gas

  • Ireland: Gas

  • Israel: Gas

  • Italy: Gas

  • Jamaica: Oil

  • Japan: Gas

  • Jordan: Gas

  • Kazakhstan: Coal

  • Kenya: Other Renewable Resource

  • Kiribati: Oil

  • Kuwait: Gas

  • Kyrgyzstan: Hydropower 

  • Laos: Hydropower 

  • Latvia: Hydropower

  • Lebanon: Oil

  • Lesotho: Hydropower 

  • Liberia: Oil

  • Libya: Gas

  • Lithuania: Gas

  • Luxembourg: Wind

  • Madagascar: Hydropower 

  • Malawi: Hydropower 

  • Malaysia: Coal

  • Maldives: Oil

  • Mali: Oil

  • Malta: Gas

  • Martinique: Oil

  • Mauritania: Oil

  • Mauritius: Oil

  • Mexico: Gas

  • Moldova: Coal

  • Mongolia: Coal

  • Montenegro: Hydropower 

  • Montserrat: Oil

  • Morocco: Coal

  • Mozambique: Hydropower 

  • Namibia: Hydropower 

  • Nauru: Oil

  • Nepal: Hydropower 

  • Netherlands: Gas

  • New Caledonia: Oil

  • New Zealand: Hydropower 

  • Nicaragua: Other Renewable Resource

  • Niger: Oil

  • Nigeria: Gas

  • Niue: Oil

  • North Korea: Hydropower 

  • North Macedonia: Hydropower 

  • Norway: Hydropower 

  • Oman: Gas

  • Pakistan: Hydropower 

  • Palestine: Oil

  • Panama: Hydropower 

  • Papua New Guinea: Oil

  • Paraguay: Hydropower 

  • Peru: Hydropower 

  • Philippines: Coal

  • Poland: Coal

  • Portugal: Gas

  • Puerto Rico: Oil

  • Qatar: Gas

  • Reunion: Oil

  • Romania: Hydropower 

  • Russia: Gas

  • Rwanda: Hydropower 

  • Saint Helena: Oil

  • Saint Kitts and Nevis: Oil

  • Saint Lucia: Oil

  • Saint Pierre and Miquelon: Oil

  • Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: Oil

  • Samoa: Oil

  • Sao Tome and Principe: Oil

  • Saudi Arabia: Gas

  • Senegal: Oil

  • Serbia: Coal

  • Seychelles: Oil

  • Sierra Leone: Hydropower 

  • Singapore: Gas

  • Slovakia: Nuclear

  • Slovenia: Nuclear

  • Solomon Islands: Oil

  • Somalia: Oil

  • South Africa: Coal

  • South Korea: Coal

  • South Sudan: Oil

  • Spain: Gas

  • Sri Lanka: Hydropower 

  • Sudan: Hydropower 

  • Suriname: Hydropower 

  • Sweden: Hydropower

  • Switzerland: Hydropower 

  • Syria: Oil

  • Taiwan: Coal

  • Tajikistan: Hydropower 

  • Tanzania: Gas

  • Thailand: Gas

  • Togo: Oil

  • Tonga: Oil

  • Trinidad and Tobago: Gas

  • Tunisia: Gas

  • Turkey: Coal

  • Turkmenistan: Oil

  • Turks and Caicos Islands: Oil

  • Uganda: Hydropower 

  • Ukraine: Nuclear

  • United Arab Emirates: Gas

  • United Kingdom: Gas

  • United States: Gas

  • United States Virgin Islands: Oil

  • Uruguay: Wind

  • Uzbekistan: Gas

  • Vanuatu: Oil

  • Venezuela: Hydropower

  • Vietnam: Coal

  • Yemen: Oil

  • Zambia: Hydropower

  • Zimbabwe: Hydropower

Which countries use renewable energy for electricity the most?

Based on the available data, the following are the top 10 countries that use each of the most common renewable resources for electricity the most, measured in kilowatt-hours per capita:

Hydropower

  1. Iceland: 39,305.04

  2. Norway: 24,326.10

  3. Canada: 10,130.67

  4. Bhutan: 8,660.99

  5. Sweden: 7,342.48

  6. Greenland: 7,229.71

  7. Paraguay: 6,946.02

  8. New Zealand: 5,015.55

  9. Austria: 4,761.41

  10. Switzerland: 4,308.30

Overall, hydropower is the most-used renewable resource for electricity per capita in the world. It is the top source of electricity consumption overall in 58 different countries and the top renewable source of electricity in 113 countries.

Other renewable resources

  1. Iceland: 17,495.58

  2. Finland: 1,938.06

  3. New Zealand: 1,683.54

  4. Sweden: 1,058.39

  5. Estonia: 994.90

  6. Denmark: 880.66

  7. Uruguay: 783.24

  8. Germany: 602.74

  9. Japan: 534.30

  10. United Kingdom: 522.60

Other renewable resources can include fuel types like biomass (organic materials like wood, biogas, ethanol, and biodiesel) and geothermal energy. They are popular forms of energy production in both developing countries and countries looking to avoid carbon dioxide emissions from traditional fossil fuels.

Wind power

  1. Denmark: 2,825.43

  2. Sweden: 2,701.54

  3. Ireland: 2,250.83

  4. Falkland Islands: 2,233.33

  5. Norway: 1,719.37

  6. Germany: 1,605.32

  7. Uruguay: 1,564.59

  8. Finland: 1,383.76

  9. Aruba: 1,283.02

  10. Portugal: 1,208.21

Wind power is also a popular renewable resource for electricity, as it’s the most commonly used renewable energy source for electricity in many different countries around the world. Systems like wind turbine monitoring are often used to measure the effectiveness of wind energy systems.

Solar power

  1. Puerto Rico: 825.09

  2. Australia: 730.94

  3. Japan: 667.72

  4. Germany: 608.71

  5. Cook Islands: 596.06

  6. Netherlands: 461.83

  7. Switzerland: 459.12

  8. Spain: 443.92

  9. Italy: 440.02

  10. Malta: 429.35

Solar power is also becoming increasingly common in many countries, particularly those that have a high number of sunny days throughout the year.

How is electricity made?

Electricity is generated by converting primary sources like coal, oil, gas, solar power, and hydropower into energy. In the case of fossil fuels, they are typically burned to generate heat, which produces steam to rotate a generator to produce electricity. This form of electricity production is very efficient but is not renewable and can harm the environment. Renewable resources work in different ways to create electricity. For instance, solar panels absorb sunlight to create electrical charges within the panel’s cell to generate power.

Many countries are creating initiatives to start using more renewable sources of energy, so it will be interesting to see how energy breakdowns change through the years.

Electricity sources by country

The following is a complete breakdown of electricity sources by country according to kilowatt-hours used per capita based on the most recently available data:

CountryCoal electricity per capita (kWh)Gas electricity per capita (kWh)Oil electricity per capita (kWh)Nuclear electricity per capita (kWh)Hydro electricity per capita (kWh)Wind electricity per capita (kWh)Solar electricity per capita (kWh)Other renewable electricity per capita (kWh)
Afghanistan0.004.000.000.0022.080.001.050.00
Albania0.000.000.000.001788.940.007.640.00
Algeria0.001709.890.000.002.470.2614.280.00
American Samoa0.000.002963.640.000.000.000.000.00
Angola0.0040.3333.730.00309.500.000.577.94
Antigua and Barbuda0.000.003367.700.000.000.00154.640.00
Argentina31.991918.0977.26221.49461.41208.4229.7441.90
Armenia0.00968.280.00685.94793.541.014.390.00
Aruba0.000.007968.550.000.001283.02101.060.00
Australia5298.041887.56220.100.00631.88953.29730.94135.03
Austria79.571159.27360.840.004761.41762.59140.46451.75
Azerbaijan0.001234.271122.360.00152.8113.314.3415.32
Bahamas0.000.004903.170.000.000.008.980.00
Bahrain0.0017110.8716.490.000.000.615.030.00
Bangladesh26.86343.39111.170.004.240.042.530.02
Barbados0.000.003396.050.000.000.00139.370.00
Belarus0.003692.960.000.0036.4618.8419.1535.56
Belgium7.882247.91305.932915.6123.561068.85397.75446.25
Belize0.000.0041.880.00756.460.002.72363.33
Benin0.008.254.070.000.000.000.420.01
Bermuda0.000.009386.240.000.000.000.000.00
Bhutan0.000.000.060.008660.991.311.310.00
Bolivia0.00507.230.000.00249.725.4821.5723.04
Bosnia and Herzegovina3278.290.000.000.001479.1271.869.143.25
Botswana1312.360.000.000.000.000.002.170.00
Brazil102.53245.77245.7761.861840.42266.6435.72257.54
British Virgin Islands0.000.002266.670.000.0041.6710.270.00
Brunei0.009385.530.000.000.000.004.620.00
Bulgaria1944.14322.6563.732394.22426.72212.27225.56214.42
Burkina Faso0.000.0051.650.006.870.002.610.08
Burundi0.000.000.000.0019.080.000.690.50
Cambodia201.490.008.860.00244.440.020.974.41
Cameroon0.00102.0726.220.00206.370.000.731.61
Canada1180.871489.47100.002470.3710130.67890.35116.23269.63
Cayman Islands0.000.0010446.150.000.000.00248.690.00
Central African Republic0.000.000.210.0031.610.000.000.00
Chad0.000.0013.920.000.000.560.000.00
Chile915.81589.05612.550.001071.56303.58390.56240.54
China3217.63176.07111.38254.43941.55324.11181.4090.14
Colombia155.24287.2416.060.00970.600.133.753.75
Comoros0.000.00137.090.000.470.000.000.00
Congo0.00356.0675.130.00236.600.000.190.00
Cook Islands0.000.001833.330.000.000.00596.060.00
Costa Rica0.000.003.600.001610.07288.4014.89352.35
Croatia301.93801.2710.390.001358.37381.1719.50226.74
Cuba0.00182.981498.810.0015.651.8513.2431.56
Cyprus0.000.004657.650.000.00227.76227.7631.56
Czechia2994.42543.81280.232804.82184.3664.36204.25457.91
Democratic Republic of Congo0.000.030.010.00126.370.000.120.33
Denmark732.66182.10178.090.002.572825.432825.43880.66
Djibouti0.000.0041.070.000.000.001.030.00
Dominica0.000.00958.330.00277.7813.892.470.00
Dominican Republic310.52324.77857.240.0098.0572.6337.2523.65
Ecuador0.00193.40193.400.001405.454.952.1926.19
Egypt0.001491.700.000.00125.0827.8136.662.99
El Salvador0.000.00265.260.000.000.0033.36297.64
Equatorial Guinea0.00565.430.000.00432.460.000.000.00
Eritrea0.000.00130.100.000.000.5717.160.00
Estonia0.0039.693079.610.000.53669.8329.97994.90
Ethiopia0.000.000.050.00124.844.760.180.26
Falkland Islands0.000.004333.330.000.002233.330.000.00
Fiji0.000.00476.030.00637.082.9216.8564.90
Finland621.44689.77592.124191.842741.551383.7616.281938.06
France65.50524.65176.595441.58950.84601.04202.07134.61
French Guiana0.001314.10571.350.001900.340.00171.8234.14
French Polynesia0.000.001370.370.00645.160.36143.370.00
Gabon0.00544.9958.170.00407.880.000.925.22
Gambia0.000.00136.430.000.000.041.280.00
Georgia0.00670.720.000.002212.3321.270.000.00
Germany1601.741093.29268.55767.45223.191605.32608.71602.74
Ghana0.00197.830.000.00197.830.001.080.55
Gibraltar0.000.005861.180.000.000.000.000.00
Greece709.011703.96559.080.00363.32853.95417.7330.13
Greenland0.000.001775.560.007229.710.000.000.00
Grenada0.000.001973.210.000.001.7929.420.00
Guadeloupe0.000.003623.330.000.00131.00250.00178.36
Guam0.000.009982.040.000.000.00407.190.00
Guatemala115.390.00198.300.00252.4418.8313.03174.39
Guinea0.000.00124.840.00124.840.001.640.00
Guinea-Bissau0.000.0021.860.000.000.001.040.00
Guyana0.000.001401.450.000.000.5110.895.96
Haiti0.000.0067.800.0020.660.000.090.00
Honduras0.0011.10223.310.00362.5683.62114.30138.01
Hong Kong0.000.004651.290.000.000.130.1313.13
Hungary371.92915.7936.121662.9328.0567.90167.63167.63
Iceland0.000.008.320.0039305.0439305.040.0017495.58
India686.1837.760.1032.28118.4943.7842.5611.29
Indonesia620.17180.7961.750.0077.411.790.3696.56
Iran7.112537.821116.0969.84261.364.742.910.29
Iraq0.001284.23759.350.0062.400.001.450.00
Ireland149.683319.96327.450.00185.252250.833.37170.94
Israel2609.464967.140.000.000.027.51304.8520.04
Italy247.502077.88262.720.00795.19313.30440.02417.25
Jamaica0.00205.531025.910.0065.58102.4416.965.20
Japan2166.142328.92653.34340.19671.6384.00667.72534.30
Jordan0.001529.99155.690.001.29118.79148.490.40
Kazakhstan3844.841023.8040.240.00500.8150.1357.370.15
Kenya0.000.0023.470.0060.3529.731.75102.02
Kiribati0.000.00214.690.000.000.0040.990.00
Kuwait0.0016966.400.000.000.004.2833.280.00
Kyrgyzstan164.620.0012.210.002136.150.000.000.00
Laos2002.510.000.000.002696.330.002.798.18
Latvia0.181201.660.000.001370.3688.440.67429.28
Lebanon0.001351.131624.670.0043.960.8811.670.00
Lesotho0.000.000.000.00254.510.000.470.00
Liberia0.000.0080.280.000.000.000.810.00
Libya0.004357.61226.530.000.000.001.180.00
Lithuania0.00587.3666.620.0091.99555.7231.05207.41
Luxembourg0.00311.95123.300.00148.21406.68191.26347.30
Madagascar26.546.5416.080.0035.930.020.851.10
Malawi0.009.230.000.0062.090.002.682.94
Malaysia2092.822017.3376.140.00836.620.0025.0448.59
Maldives0.000.001168.240.000.004.710.000.00
Mali0.000.00122.400.0073.410.001.632.65
Malta0.003952.9541.000.000.000.13429.3520.27
Martinique0.000.003885.640.000.0015.430.00296.10
Mauritania0.0042.7947.360.0044.1923.0431.820.00
Mauritius583.060.001295.950.0098.1611.8147.24343.83
Mexico97.761405.05264.2187.92205.98149.4580.2758.42
Moldova1093.48143.190.000.0073.7110.640.747.67
Mongolia1860.730.000.000.0028.29114.6612.200.00
Montenegro2349.000.000.000.003657.90334.390.000.00
Montserrat0.000.002733.330.000.000.000.000.00
Morocco448.70263.68123.030.0044.90128.8443.350.44
Mozambique0.000.0085.050.00418.140.000.072.02
Namibia4.190.002.090.00406.582.0010.420.00
Nauru0.000.003515.150.000.000.000.000.00
Nepal0.000.000.000.00186.170.492.800.00
Netherlands521.754345.46327.41237.894.33909.55461.83455.83
New Caledonia0.000.009416.960.001093.69159.010.000.00
New Zealand682.91780.10213.090.005015.55474.2330.051683.54
Nicaragua0.0035.01218.970.0068.03111.523.36249.72
Niger5.680.0018.530.000.000.001.030.00
Nigeria0.00149.450.000.0034.690.010.150.13
Niue0.000.001500.000.000.000.000.000.00
North Korea82.120.000.000.00531.830.040.580.00
North MacedoniaN/AN/AN/A0.00558.6548.8711.1526.45
Norway0.00305.6715.700.0024326.101719.372.40122.90
Oman0.007426.160.000.000.000.000.800.00
Pakistan132.7379.30156.2544.86214.1114.444.6612.11
Palestine0.000.0059.070.000.000.000.000.07
Panama105.91141.21231.590.001955.57160.1569.487.69
Papua New Guinea0.00132.19256.860.0091.160.000.164.72
Paraguay0.000.000.270.006946.020.000.00125.83
Peru18.68536.390.000.00922.1354.9623.7517.67
Philippines448.65154.3697.910.0070.299.1612.23104.38
Philippines2903.91433.78117.620.0053.41414.4454.9454.94
Portugal300.191698.31101.520.001236.631208.21142.09413.37
Puerto Rico0.000.005338.900.0011.05825.09825.094.81
Qatar0.0016612.970.000.000.000.002.9540.53
Reunion0.000.002397.080.00676.0414.40281.21209.30
Romania487.01518.9736.64596.92798.55361.9391.8229.39
Russia1062.123028.9165.541387.221435.889.2011.4825.56
Rwanda0.0017.2512.790.0027.470.004.284.28
Saint Helena0.000.001388.890.000.000.000.000.00
Saint Kitts and Nevis0.000.003553.460.000.00143.400.000.00
Saint Lucia0.000.002080.150.000.000.0017.280.00
Saint Pierre and Miquelon0.000.008111.110.000.000.000.000.00
Saint Pierre and Miquelon0.000.001054.050.00216.220.009.010.00
Samoa0.000.00455.160.00237.320.660.000.00
Sao Tome and Principe0.000.00387.600.0031.010.000.000.00
Saudi Arabia0.006205.914337.220.000.000.144.520.00
Senegal0.000.00255.070.0022.410.004.915.79
Serbia3654.040.000.000.001415.45124.622.0624.50
Seychelles0.000.004370.750.000.000.0051.020.00
Sierra Leone0.000.0010.790.0023.040.000.770.50
Singapore0.005785.092474.820.000.000.0073.68208.76
Slovakia362.04689.440.002827.732827.731.82110.71378.90
Slovenia2105.79287.366.083044.122437.303.00139.22137.10
Solomon Islands0.000.00154.730.000.000.004.323.49
Somalia0.000.0021.370.000.000.400.710.00
South Africa3213.8629.0686.48194.4419.58111.7195.997.58
South Korea3738.422779.31361.762986.9677.6857.3957.3957.39
South Sudan0.000.0049.400.000.000.000.270.00
Spain134.661467.30340.141247.08682.381179.49443.92145.84
Sri Lanka170.630.00228.460.00303.8717.2117.354.55
Sudan0.0044.88114.410.00232.840.000.472.81
Suriname0.000.001188.080.002003.860.0017.2111.10
Sweden33.1738.12290.814973.187342.482701.5440.301058.39
Switzerland0.000.0076.432690.294308.3019.24459.12381.41
Syria0.00432.60526.580.0050.320.000.001.93
Taiwan4900.873944.78336.171270.92110.8093.95274.11159.34
Tajikistan0.000.00148.530.000.000.000.000.00
Tanzania0.0061.3318.390.0038.850.001.521.29
Thailand496.741531.1510.170.0065.9047.6269.9969.99
Togo0.0010.3136.870.000.000.000.000.00
Tonga0.000.00548.080.000.000.000.000.00
Trinidad and Tobago0.005216.75754.560.000.000.003.580.00
Tunisia0.001582.920.000.005.5342.3114.720.00
Turkey1172.83791.066.860.00915.64288.34126.98162.54
Turkmenistan0.001216.822347.980.000.050.000.000.00
Turks and Caicos Islands0.000.005043.860.000.000.000.000.00
Uganda0.000.006.530.0090.340.001.6511.46
Ukraine863.16242.6244.331597.68162.63112.7222.826.52
United Arab Emirates0.0012879.850.310.000.000.10426.770.61
United Kingdom78.351644.71110.25763.3097.171086.76196.71522.60
United States2337.764922.1387.452386.44863.411016.71400.69220.50
United States Virgin Islands0.000.005412.700.000.000.0068.950.00
Uruguay0.0031.90198.620.001170.831564.59131.81783.24
Uzbekistan372.861268.2044.350.00165.280.000.210.00
Vanuatu0.000.00214.440.000.0016.0017.650.00
Venezuela0.001298.980.000.001824.992.490.210.00
Vietnam1453.21429.7111.400.00700.819.99138.431.29
Yemen0.0026.4342.620.000.000.0017.150.00
Zambia111.890.0056.170.00771.090.000.024.48
Zimbabwe259.850.000.000.00342.780.000.9614.11