Electricity generation from low-carbon sources in Canada
Canada: Electricity generation from low-carbon sources was 502.23 terawatt-hours in 2025. ▲ Rising
Electricity generation from low-carbon sources in Canada, 1990–2025
Source: Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in terawatt-hours.
Analysis
Canada recorded 502.23 terawatt-hours for electricity generation from low-carbon sources in 2025.
That represents a change of up 1.5% on the previous year and down 4.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, electricity generation from low-carbon sources in Canada peaked at 541.16 terawatt-hours in 2017 and was at its lowest, 372.1 terawatt-hours, in 1990.
Canada ranks 6th of 214 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Electricity generation from low-carbon sources in Canada, year by year
| Year | terawatt-hours | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 372.1 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1991 | 395.6 terawatt-hours | +6.3% |
| 1992 | 399.72 terawatt-hours | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 420.38 terawatt-hours | +5.2% |
| 1994 | 440.73 terawatt-hours | +4.8% |
| 1995 | 438.43 terawatt-hours | -0.5% |
| 1996 | 454.31 terawatt-hours | +3.6% |
| 1997 | 438.87 terawatt-hours | -3.4% |
| 1998 | 410.92 terawatt-hours | -6.4% |
| 1999 | 427.1 terawatt-hours | +3.9% |
| 2000 | 438.25 terawatt-hours | +2.6% |
| 2001 | 417.7 terawatt-hours | -4.7% |
| 2002 | 434.75 terawatt-hours | +4.1% |
| 2003 | 420.64 terawatt-hours | -3.2% |
| 2004 | 438.91 terawatt-hours | +4.3% |
| 2005 | 464.11 terawatt-hours | +5.7% |
| 2006 | 461.6 terawatt-hours | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 472.48 terawatt-hours | +2.4% |
| 2008 | 484.65 terawatt-hours | +2.6% |
| 2009 | 473.84 terawatt-hours | -2.2% |
| 2010 | 460.7 terawatt-hours | -2.8% |
| 2011 | 489.63 terawatt-hours | +6.3% |
| 2012 | 497.57 terawatt-hours | +1.6% |
| 2013 | 518.2 terawatt-hours | +4.1% |
| 2014 | 513.78 terawatt-hours | -0.9% |
| 2015 | 523.14 terawatt-hours | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 531.45 terawatt-hours | +1.6% |
| 2017 | 541.16 terawatt-hours | +1.8% |
| 2018 | 533.42 terawatt-hours | -1.4% |
| 2019 | 529.2 terawatt-hours | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 534.3 terawatt-hours | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 527.37 terawatt-hours | -1.3% |
| 2022 | 539.1 terawatt-hours | +2.2% |
| 2023 | 507.88 terawatt-hours | -5.8% |
| 2024 | 494.75 terawatt-hours | -2.6% |
| 2025 | 502.23 terawatt-hours | +1.5% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 502.23 terawatt-hours is above the median for high income countries, which is 9.82 terawatt-hours, 51.1× the median. (75 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 419.82 terawatt-hours | 372.1 terawatt-hours | 454.31 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2000s | 450.69 terawatt-hours | 417.7 terawatt-hours | 484.65 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2010s | 513.83 terawatt-hours | 460.7 terawatt-hours | 541.16 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2020s | 517.61 terawatt-hours | 494.75 terawatt-hours | 539.1 terawatt-hours | 6 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More climate change data for Canada
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 2.27 billion kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 44,359 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 9,631 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 34,728 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 36.34 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 1,240 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 17,229 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 16,823 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 406.39 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 63.48 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is electricity generation from low-carbon sources in Canada?
- Electricity generation from low-carbon sources in Canada was 502.23 terawatt-hours in 2025, according to Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest electricity generation from low-carbon sources recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 541.16 terawatt-hours in 2017.
- What is the lowest electricity generation from low-carbon sources recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 372.1 terawatt-hours in 1990.
- How does Canada rank for electricity generation from low-carbon sources?
- Canada ranks 6th out of 214 countries with data for 2025.
- Is electricity generation from low-carbon sources rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from Ember (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Electricity generation from low-carbon sources. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
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.