Iraq vs Saudi Arabia: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring

Iraq
946.27 million tonnes
in 2024
Saudi Arabia
1.07 billion tonnes
in 2024
Iraq rank
7th
Saudi Arabia rank
6th

Cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring over time

  • Iraq
  • Saudi Arabia
0250.0M500.0M750.0M1.0B195019872024

How they compare

Saudi Arabia currently reports 1.07 billion tonnes against 946.27 million tonnes in Iraq, a difference of 124.49 million tonnes.

That makes Saudi Arabia's figure about 1.1 times Iraq's.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 60 shared years of data; in 1965 it was Iraq ahead.

Iraq ranks 7th and Saudi Arabia ranks 6th of 215 countries.

Across the 7 decades both report, Iraq averaged higher in 1 and Saudi Arabia in 6.

Head to head by decade

Decade Iraq Saudi Arabia Difference Ahead
1960s 29.92 million tonnes 24.03 million tonnes 5.89 million tonnes Iraq
1970s 129.73 million tonnes 360.86 million tonnes 231.13 million tonnes Saudi Arabia
1980s 267.63 million tonnes 843.27 million tonnes 575.64 million tonnes Saudi Arabia
1990s 332.21 million tonnes 906.01 million tonnes 573.81 million tonnes Saudi Arabia
2000s 439.14 million tonnes 971.85 million tonnes 532.71 million tonnes Saudi Arabia
2010s 638.26 million tonnes 1.03 billion tonnes 393.18 million tonnes Saudi Arabia
2020s 878.78 million tonnes 1.06 billion tonnes 183.28 million tonnes Saudi Arabia

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring, Iraq or Saudi Arabia?
Saudi Arabia, at 1.07 billion tonnes against 946.27 million tonnes in Iraq as of 2024.
What is the difference in cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring between Iraq and Saudi Arabia?
124.49 million tonnes, with Saudi Arabia ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Iraq and Saudi Arabia?
60 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2024.
How do Iraq and Saudi Arabia rank globally for cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring?
Iraq ranks 7th and Saudi Arabia ranks 6th of 215 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring
Unit
tonnes
Source
Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
215 places, 12,483 data points, 1750–2024
Last refreshed

Cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from flaring since the first year of available data, measured in tonnes.