South Africa Key Figures
- Population:
- 60.4 million
- GDP growth rate:
- 0.60 %/year
- Energy independence:
- 100%
Data of the last year available: 2023
- Total consumption/GDP:*
- 73.6 (2005=100)
- CO2 Emissions:
- 6.73 tCO2/capita
- Rate of T&D power losses:
- 11.2%
* at purchasing power parity
View all macro and energy indicators in the South Africa energy report
South Africa Energy News
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South Africa Energy Research
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South Africa Total Energy Consumption
Total energy consumption per capita peaked in 2008 at 3 toe per capita and then progressively decreased to 2.1 toe per capita in 2023 (over 4 times the average energy consumption per capita in the other Southern African countries: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia). Electricity consumption per capita peaked at 4 500 kWh in 2007 before decreasing to 3 200 kWh in 2023 (around 9 times the value of other Southern African countries).
Total energy consumption has been decreasing since 2019 (by 3%/year).
Interactive Chart South Africa Total Energy Consumption
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View the detailed fondamentals of the market at country level (graphs, tables, analysis) in the South Africa energy report
South Africa Crude Oil Production
Conventional production of crude oil is marginal (0.06 Mt in 2023). Oil mostly comes from synthetic fuels through the Secunda coal-to-liquid facility (Sasol, 150 kb/d), which produced 3.3 Mt of refined products in FY2023-2024. Another plant, Mossel Bay GTL (PetroSA, 45 kb/d), is off since 2020 due to a lack of gaseous feedstock.
The refining capacity has increased to 395 kb/d with the return to operations of the Sapref refinery in Durban- (180 kb/d), which was stopped in 2022. The two other remaining refineries are Natref (108 kb/d) and Astron Energy (100 kb/d).
Interactive Chart South Africa Crude Oil Production
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South Africa Oil Products Consumption
Oil consumption increased by 3% in 2023, after a 7%/year reduction over 2018-2022; before that, it remained roughly stable at around 27 Mt between 2011 and 2018.
Transport accounts for 66% of that consumption, followed by industry (including non-energy uses) with 24%, residential-services-agriculture (10%), and the hydrocarbon sector (less than 1%).
Graph: OIL CONSUMPTION (Mt)
Graph: OIL CONSUMPTION BREAKDOWN BY SECTOR (2023, %)
Interactive Chart South Africa Refined Oil Products Production
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South Africa Natural Gas Consumption
Gas consumption increased by 5% in 2023 to 4.6 bcm, following a decrease of 3% in 2022 and a significant drop of 13% in 2021; before that, it was quite stable between 2015 and 2020. Previously, it rose with strong fluctuations, at an average pace of 8%/year between 2000 and 2015.
Gas is mainly used in industry (51%) and to produce fuels in the gas-to-liquids plant (48%).
Graph: NATURAL GAS CONSUMPTION (bcm)
Interactive Chart South Africa Natural Gas Domestic Consumption
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South Africa Coal Consumption
Coal consumption has dropped by 4%/year since 2018, reaching 160 Mt in 2023. This represents the lowest consumption since 2001. Between 2008 and 2019, coal consumption fluctuated around 190 Mt.
Power generation absorbed 63% of the coal consumed in 2023, followed by coal transformation (23%), industry (10%), and the residential and services sectors (4%).
Graph: COAL CONSUMPTION (Mt)
Graph: COAL CONSUMPTION BREAKDOWN BY SECTOR (2023, %)
Interactive Chart South Africa Coal and Lignite Domestic Consumption
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View the detailed consumption trends at country level (graphs, tables, analysis) in the South Africa energy report
South Africa Power Consumption
Electricity consumption decreased by 4% to 195 TWh in 2023, which is in line with the downward trend observed since 2018 (-2.5%/year). It remained stable between 2005 and 2018, fluctuating between 206 and 221 TWh.
Industry is the main electricity consumer (47%), followed by the residential sector (22%) and services (18%).
Graph: ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION (TWh)
Graph: ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION BREAKDOWN BY SECTOR (2023, %)
South Africa Renewable in % Electricity Production
The IRP2023 targets the addition of 8.2 GW of wind and solar over 2022-2030, made up of 4.5 GW of wind and 3.7 GW of solar. Wind should account for 9% of installed capacity in 2030 and solar for 7%.
Interactive Chart South Africa Share of Renewables in Electricity Production (incl hydro)
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South Africa CO2 Fuel Combustion/CO2 Emissions
The Climate Change Act was adopted in July 2024, with an objective to set out national climate change response to enable the country to meet its emissions reduction commitments. It includes mitigation and adaptation actions, emissions targets for each high-emitting sector, and allocation of carbon budgets to emitting companies.