Cumulative CO₂ emissions from oil in Greenland
Greenland: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from oil was 33.02 million tonnes in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from oil in Greenland, 1950–2024
Source: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
In 2024, cumulative co₂ emissions from oil in Greenland stood at 33.02 million tonnes. That is the highest value across all 75 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.9% on the previous year and up 20.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cumulative co₂ emissions from oil in Greenland peaked at 33.02 million tonnes in 2024 and was at its lowest, 18,320 tonnes, in 1950.
That places Greenland 167th out of 215 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from oil in Greenland, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 18,320 tonnes | — |
| 1951 | 43,968 tonnes | +140.0% |
| 1952 | 69,616 tonnes | +58.3% |
| 1953 | 109,920 tonnes | +57.9% |
| 1954 | 139,232 tonnes | +26.7% |
| 1955 | 260,144 tonnes | +86.8% |
| 1956 | 329,760 tonnes | +26.8% |
| 1957 | 412,159 tonnes | +25.0% |
| 1958 | 529,407 tonnes | +28.4% |
| 1959 | 672,303 tonnes | +27.0% |
| 1960 | 774,895 tonnes | +15.3% |
| 1961 | 948,596 tonnes | +22.4% |
| 1962 | 1.10 million tonnes | +16.4% |
| 1963 | 1.29 million tonnes | +16.9% |
| 1964 | 1.51 million tonnes | +17.3% |
| 1965 | 1.78 million tonnes | +17.7% |
| 1966 | 2.06 million tonnes | +15.8% |
| 1967 | 2.36 million tonnes | +14.3% |
| 1968 | 2.80 million tonnes | +18.6% |
| 1969 | 3.13 million tonnes | +11.7% |
| 1970 | 3.43 million tonnes | +9.7% |
| 1971 | 3.83 million tonnes | +11.6% |
| 1972 | 4.36 million tonnes | +14.0% |
| 1973 | 4.88 million tonnes | +11.8% |
| 1974 | 5.41 million tonnes | +11.0% |
| 1975 | 5.92 million tonnes | +9.3% |
| 1976 | 6.13 million tonnes | +3.5% |
| 1977 | 6.85 million tonnes | +11.8% |
| 1978 | 7.23 million tonnes | +5.6% |
| 1979 | 7.80 million tonnes | +7.8% |
| 1980 | 8.36 million tonnes | +7.2% |
| 1981 | 8.88 million tonnes | +6.3% |
| 1982 | 9.40 million tonnes | +5.8% |
| 1983 | 9.76 million tonnes | +3.8% |
| 1984 | 10.32 million tonnes | +5.8% |
| 1985 | 10.83 million tonnes | +4.9% |
| 1986 | 11.15 million tonnes | +3.0% |
| 1987 | 11.39 million tonnes | +2.1% |
| 1988 | 11.94 million tonnes | +4.8% |
| 1989 | 12.41 million tonnes | +4.0% |
| 1990 | 13.03 million tonnes | +5.0% |
| 1991 | 13.64 million tonnes | +4.7% |
| 1992 | 14.24 million tonnes | +4.4% |
| 1993 | 14.78 million tonnes | +3.8% |
| 1994 | 15.28 million tonnes | +3.4% |
| 1995 | 15.81 million tonnes | +3.5% |
| 1996 | 16.41 million tonnes | +3.8% |
| 1997 | 17.02 million tonnes | +3.8% |
| 1998 | 17.62 million tonnes | +3.5% |
| 1999 | 18.22 million tonnes | +3.4% |
| 2000 | 18.88 million tonnes | +3.7% |
| 2001 | 19.50 million tonnes | +3.3% |
| 2002 | 20.08 million tonnes | +3.0% |
| 2003 | 20.73 million tonnes | +3.2% |
| 2004 | 21.35 million tonnes | +3.0% |
| 2005 | 21.98 million tonnes | +2.9% |
| 2006 | 22.62 million tonnes | +2.9% |
| 2007 | 23.26 million tonnes | +2.8% |
| 2008 | 23.91 million tonnes | +2.8% |
| 2009 | 24.49 million tonnes | +2.4% |
| 2010 | 25.15 million tonnes | +2.7% |
| 2011 | 25.85 million tonnes | +2.8% |
| 2012 | 26.40 million tonnes | +2.1% |
| 2013 | 26.96 million tonnes | +2.1% |
| 2014 | 27.47 million tonnes | +1.9% |
| 2015 | 28.01 million tonnes | +2.0% |
| 2016 | 28.52 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 2017 | 29.06 million tonnes | +1.9% |
| 2018 | 29.58 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 30.11 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 2020 | 30.66 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 2021 | 31.20 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 2022 | 31.79 million tonnes | +1.9% |
| 2023 | 32.40 million tonnes | +1.9% |
| 2024 | 33.02 million tonnes | +1.9% |
Greenland compared with similar countries
- Greenland's 33.02 million tonnes is below the median for high income countries, which is 681.33 million tonnes, 5% of the median. (74 countries reporting)
- Greenland's 33.02 million tonnes is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.30 billion tonnes, 3% of the median. (52 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cumulative CO₂ emissions from oil in Greenland changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | +140.0% | 18,320 tonnes | 43,968 tonnes |
| 1955 | +86.8% | 139,232 tonnes | 260,144 tonnes |
| 1952 | +58.3% | 43,968 tonnes | 69,616 tonnes |
| 1953 | +57.9% | 69,616 tonnes | 109,920 tonnes |
| 1958 | +28.4% | 412,159 tonnes | 529,407 tonnes |
| 1956 | +26.8% | 260,144 tonnes | 329,760 tonnes |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 258,483 tonnes | 18,320 tonnes | 672,303 tonnes | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.78 million tonnes | 774,895 tonnes | 3.13 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1970s | 5.58 million tonnes | 3.43 million tonnes | 7.80 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 10.44 million tonnes | 8.36 million tonnes | 12.41 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 15.61 million tonnes | 13.03 million tonnes | 18.22 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 21.68 million tonnes | 18.88 million tonnes | 24.49 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 27.71 million tonnes | 25.15 million tonnes | 30.11 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 31.81 million tonnes | 30.66 million tonnes | 33.02 million tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near Greenland
- 164 French Polynesia 35.02 million tonnes compare
- 165 Maldives 33.65 million tonnes compare
- 166 Faroe Islands 33.42 million tonnes compare
- 168 Rwanda 32.81 million tonnes compare
- 169 Bermuda 30.98 million tonnes compare
- 170 Equatorial Guinea 29.58 million tonnes compare
More climate change data for Greenland
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 148,208 kg (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 0.8215 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 0.8215 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0.0031 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions (CO2eq) 0.8215 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 0.8215 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions 0.0031 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Direct emissions 0.0023 kt (2050)
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Indirect emissions (N2O that) 0.0002 kt (2050)
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Indirect emissions (N2O that leaches) 0.0005 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cumulative co₂ emissions from oil in Greenland?
- Cumulative co₂ emissions from oil in Greenland was 33.02 million tonnes in 2024, according to Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cumulative co₂ emissions from oil recorded in Greenland?
- The highest recorded value was 33.02 million tonnes in 2024.
- What is the lowest cumulative co₂ emissions from oil recorded in Greenland?
- The lowest recorded value was 18,320 tonnes in 1950.
- How does Greenland rank for cumulative co₂ emissions from oil?
- Greenland ranks 167th out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cumulative co₂ emissions from oil rising or falling in Greenland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 20.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Greenland data come from?
- The figures come from Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Cumulative CO₂ emissions from oil. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 75 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from oil since the first year of available data, measured in tonnes.