China vs OECD (EI): Electricity generation from low-carbon sources
China
4,408 terawatt-hours
in 2025
OECD (EI)
6,007 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China rank
1st
OECD (EI) rank
1st
Electricity generation from low-carbon sources over time
- China
- OECD (EI)
How they compare
OECD (EI) currently reports 6,007 terawatt-hours against 4,408 terawatt-hours in China, a difference of 1,599 terawatt-hours.
That makes OECD (EI)'s figure about 1.4 times China's.
Across all 55 years both countries report, OECD (EI) has been ahead every year.
China ranks 1st and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 214 countries.
OECD (EI) has averaged higher in every one of the 6 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | OECD (EI) | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 40.69 terawatt-hours | 1,371 terawatt-hours | 1,330 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1980s | 88.59 terawatt-hours | 2,403 terawatt-hours | 2,314 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1990s | 177.4 terawatt-hours | 3,448 terawatt-hours | 3,271 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2000s | 458.53 terawatt-hours | 3,959 terawatt-hours | 3,500 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2010s | 1,518 terawatt-hours | 4,536 terawatt-hours | 3,018 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2020s | 3,347 terawatt-hours | 5,520 terawatt-hours | 2,173 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher electricity generation from low-carbon sources, China or OECD (EI)?
- OECD (EI), at 6,007 terawatt-hours against 4,408 terawatt-hours in China as of 2025.
- What is the difference in electricity generation from low-carbon sources between China and OECD (EI)?
- 1,599 terawatt-hours, with OECD (EI) ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and OECD (EI)?
- 55 years are reported by both, from 1971 to 2025.
- How do China and OECD (EI) rank globally for electricity generation from low-carbon sources?
- China ranks 1st and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 214 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Electricity generation from low-carbon sources. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured in terawatt-hours. Low-carbon sources correspond to renewables and nuclear power, that produce significantly less greenhouse-gas emissions than fossil fuels. Renewables include solar, wind, hydropower, bioenergy, geothermal, wave, and tidal.