Share of global CO₂ emissions from flaring in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Share of global CO₂ emissions from flaring was 1.1% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Share of global CO₂ emissions from flaring in Saudi Arabia, 1950–2024
Source: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 1.1% for share of global co₂ emissions from flaring in 2024.
The figure is down 2.2% on the previous year and up 16.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of global co₂ emissions from flaring in Saudi Arabia peaked at 23.3% in 1980 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1950.
That places Saudi Arabia 14th out of 215 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of global CO₂ emissions from flaring in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 0.0% | — |
| 1951 | 0.0% | — |
| 1952 | 0.0% | — |
| 1953 | 0.0% | — |
| 1954 | 0.0% | — |
| 1955 | 0.0% | — |
| 1956 | 0.0% | — |
| 1957 | 0.0% | — |
| 1958 | 0.0% | — |
| 1959 | 0.0% | — |
| 1960 | 0.0% | — |
| 1961 | 0.0% | — |
| 1962 | 0.0% | — |
| 1963 | 0.0% | — |
| 1964 | 0.0% | — |
| 1965 | 0.0% | — |
| 1966 | 0.0% | — |
| 1967 | 9.8% | — |
| 1968 | 9.9% | +1.5% |
| 1969 | 9.7% | -2.7% |
| 1970 | 10.3% | +6.2% |
| 1971 | 11.9% | +15.9% |
| 1972 | 15.0% | +26.0% |
| 1973 | 18.2% | +21.1% |
| 1974 | 19.2% | +5.7% |
| 1975 | 16.7% | -13.3% |
| 1976 | 18.2% | +9.2% |
| 1977 | 18.9% | +3.6% |
| 1978 | 16.0% | -14.9% |
| 1979 | 18.1% | +12.7% |
| 1980 | 23.3% | +29.0% |
| 1981 | 20.7% | -11.0% |
| 1982 | 17.5% | -15.9% |
| 1983 | 14.7% | -15.5% |
| 1984 | 4.3% | -70.5% |
| 1985 | 3.3% | -24.4% |
| 1986 | 2.7% | -17.2% |
| 1987 | 2.4% | -13.3% |
| 1988 | 3.4% | +44.9% |
| 1989 | 5.2% | +52.8% |
| 1990 | 0.2% | -96.6% |
| 1991 | 0.3% | +76.7% |
| 1992 | 0.2% | -29.3% |
| 1993 | 0.3% | +39.7% |
| 1994 | 2.1% | +584.3% |
| 1995 | 1.9% | -11.3% |
| 1996 | 2.0% | +3.1% |
| 1997 | 2.2% | +12.9% |
| 1998 | 2.0% | -9.1% |
| 1999 | 1.9% | -7.8% |
| 2000 | 2.0% | +10.4% |
| 2001 | 2.0% | -4.2% |
| 2002 | 2.0% | +1.2% |
| 2003 | 2.2% | +12.9% |
| 2004 | 2.0% | -10.5% |
| 2005 | 2.1% | +6.1% |
| 2006 | 2.3% | +7.9% |
| 2007 | 2.3% | +1.5% |
| 2008 | 2.4% | +2.9% |
| 2009 | 2.2% | -6.5% |
| 2010 | 2.0% | -9.6% |
| 2011 | 1.5% | -27.1% |
| 2012 | 1.0% | -34.1% |
| 2013 | 1.0% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 1.0% | -3.2% |
| 2015 | 1.1% | +11.5% |
| 2016 | 1.0% | -1.6% |
| 2017 | 1.1% | +8.4% |
| 2018 | 1.1% | -5.2% |
| 2019 | 0.9% | -14.9% |
| 2020 | 1.1% | +16.5% |
| 2021 | 1.0% | -6.7% |
| 2022 | 0.9% | -11.7% |
| 2023 | 1.1% | +29.7% |
| 2024 | 1.1% | -2.2% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 1.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.0%, 96.3× the median. (74 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 1.1% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 0.2%, 6.6× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of global CO₂ emissions from flaring in Saudi Arabia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | +584.3% | 0.3% | 2.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 10 |
| 1960s | 2.9% | 0.0% | 9.9% | 10 |
| 1970s | 16.2% | 10.3% | 19.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 9.8% | 2.4% | 23.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.3% | 0.2% | 2.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.2% | 2.0% | 2.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.2% | 0.9% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.0% | 0.9% | 1.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More climate change data for Saudi Arabia
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 134.54 million kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 4,043 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 1,830 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 2,213 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 6.91 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 79.03 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 1,017 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 1,002 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 15.05 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 3.78 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of global co₂ emissions from flaring in Saudi Arabia?
- Share of global co₂ emissions from flaring in Saudi Arabia was 1.1% in 2024, according to Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of global co₂ emissions from flaring recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 23.3% in 1980.
- What is the lowest share of global co₂ emissions from flaring recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1950.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for share of global co₂ emissions from flaring?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 14th out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of global co₂ emissions from flaring rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global CO₂ emissions from flaring. 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
Annual emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from flaring, measured as a percentage of global emissions of CO₂ from flaring in the same year.