China vs OECD (EI): Primary energy from low-carbon energy
China
5,611 terawatt-hours
in 2025
OECD (EI)
11,810 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China rank
1st
OECD (EI) rank
1st
Primary energy from low-carbon energy over time
- China
- OECD (EI)
How they compare
OECD (EI) currently reports 11,810 terawatt-hours against 5,611 terawatt-hours in China, a difference of 6,199 terawatt-hours.
That makes OECD (EI)'s figure about 2.1 times China's.
Across all 61 years both countries report, OECD (EI) has been ahead every year.
China ranks 1st and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 77 countries.
OECD (EI) has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | OECD (EI) | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 22.02 terawatt-hours | 994.03 terawatt-hours | 972.01 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1970s | 39.03 terawatt-hours | 2,071 terawatt-hours | 2,032 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1980s | 88.59 terawatt-hours | 4,984 terawatt-hours | 4,896 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1990s | 198.41 terawatt-hours | 7,989 terawatt-hours | 7,791 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2000s | 575.89 terawatt-hours | 9,472 terawatt-hours | 8,896 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2010s | 1,976 terawatt-hours | 10,247 terawatt-hours | 8,271 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2020s | 4,407 terawatt-hours | 11,239 terawatt-hours | 6,832 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy from low-carbon energy, China or OECD (EI)?
- OECD (EI), at 11,810 terawatt-hours against 5,611 terawatt-hours in China as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy from low-carbon energy between China and OECD (EI)?
- 6,199 terawatt-hours, with OECD (EI) ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and OECD (EI)?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do China and OECD (EI) rank globally for primary energy from low-carbon energy?
- China ranks 1st and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 77 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Primary energy from low-carbon energy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured in terawatt-hours of total energy supply.