Saudi Arabia vs Spain: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from oil
Saudi Arabia
11.72 billion tonnes
in 2024
Spain
8.04 billion tonnes
in 2024
Saudi Arabia rank
13th
Spain rank
16th
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from oil over time
- Saudi Arabia
- Spain
How they compare
Saudi Arabia currently reports 11.72 billion tonnes against 8.04 billion tonnes in Spain, a difference of 3.68 billion tonnes.
That makes Saudi Arabia's figure about 1.5 times Spain's.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 89 shared years of data; in 1936 it was Spain ahead.
Saudi Arabia ranks 13th and Spain ranks 16th of 215 countries.
Across the 10 decades both report, Saudi Arabia averaged higher in 4 and Spain in 6.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Saudi Arabia | Spain | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 542,271 tonnes | 27.32 million tonnes | 26.78 million tonnes | Spain |
| 1940s | 41.75 million tonnes | 32.30 million tonnes | 9.46 million tonnes | Saudi Arabia |
| 1950s | 130.16 million tonnes | 91.68 million tonnes | 38.49 million tonnes | Saudi Arabia |
| 1960s | 162.35 million tonnes | 288.54 million tonnes | 126.19 million tonnes | Spain |
| 1970s | 317.55 million tonnes | 1.06 billion tonnes | 740.50 million tonnes | Spain |
| 1980s | 1.07 billion tonnes | 2.33 billion tonnes | 1.26 billion tonnes | Spain |
| 1990s | 2.56 billion tonnes | 3.57 billion tonnes | 1.01 billion tonnes | Spain |
| 2000s | 4.53 billion tonnes | 5.20 billion tonnes | 664.26 million tonnes | Spain |
| 2010s | 7.80 billion tonnes | 6.76 billion tonnes | 1.04 billion tonnes | Saudi Arabia |
| 2020s | 10.84 billion tonnes | 7.77 billion tonnes | 3.07 billion tonnes | Saudi Arabia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher cumulative co₂ emissions from oil, Saudi Arabia or Spain?
- Saudi Arabia, at 11.72 billion tonnes against 8.04 billion tonnes in Spain as of 2024.
- What is the difference in cumulative co₂ emissions from oil between Saudi Arabia and Spain?
- 3.68 billion tonnes, with Saudi Arabia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Saudi Arabia and Spain?
- 89 years are reported by both, from 1936 to 2024.
- How do Saudi Arabia and Spain rank globally for cumulative co₂ emissions from oil?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 13th and Spain ranks 16th 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 oil. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from oil since the first year of available data, measured in tonnes.